Interior Minister Aryeh Deri and Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan announced on Tuesday that they would ban the entry of Dublin’s mayor Mícheál Mac Donncha into Israel.
The decision came in response to Mac Donncha’s boycott campaigns against Israel. Mac Donncha was supposed to land tonight and make his way to Ramallah for a conference.
Minister Erdan said his ministry’s policy was clear, whoever works to boycott Israel won’t enter Israel.
On April 1, 2018, Mac Donncha announced he wanted to expel the Israeli ambassador to Ireland.
According to the Strategic Affairs Ministry, Mac Donncha also promotes the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) boycott campaigns against Israeli companies and international companies doing business with Israel.
Strangely though, Mac Donncha tweeted this evening that he is already in Ramallah, and flew in through Tel Aviv.
If that’s true, there’s a lot of egg on the face of those two ministers.
Update: The name the clerks at passport control received was spelled incorrectly, so his passport wasn’t flagged when he entered Israel. In Hebrew, that’s called a “Fashla“.
I can confirm I am in Ramallah and preparing for tomorrow's conference. https://t.co/F2Y5Q8IzGJ
— Lord Mayor of Dublin (@LordMayorDublin)