AAP

Netanyahu calls Belgium PM ‘weak’ after recognition vow

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has criticised his Belgium counterpart, calling him “a weak leader who seeks to appease Islamic terrorism by sacrificing Israel” a day after officials in Brussels announced they would recognise a Palestinian state.

Netanyahu’s government has been angered by pledges from the governments of France, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and now Belgium, to formally recognise a Palestinian state when world leaders gather this month at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

Belgium Prime Minister Bart De Wever “wants to feed the terrorist crocodile before it devours Belgium,” the office of the Israeli prime minister wrote on its official X account.

Israel would continue to defend itself, it said.

Netanyahu similarly hit out at Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last month, also labelling him as “weak” after Australia announced it would recognise a Palestinian state and then barred an ultranationalist Israeli MP from the country.

Netanyahu has said recognising a Palestinian state would serve as a reward for Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which triggered the Gaza Strip war. 

Israel has faced mounting international pressure over the toll its military offensive has taken on the civilian population in the shattered Palestinian enclave.

The militant Hamas group reiterated on Wednesday that it was ready for a comprehensive Gaza Strip deal through which all Israeli hostages are released in exchange for the release of an agreed upon number of Palestinian prisoners.

with DPA