Israel’s Ambassador to France Yael German resigned from her position on Thursday in protest against the new government led by Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Sadly, the government you founded and lead – including representatives of parties whose extreme positions are expressed in the fundamental positions of the government, its policies and its statements on legislation – are invalid in my eyes,” she wrote to Netanyahu.
German served until 2013 as mayor of Herzliya and then joined Yesh Atid, serving as health minister. When Yair Lapid was appointed foreign minister in 2021, he appointed her as Israel’s ambassador to France.
“All these place, in my view, the character of the State of Israel and its values – as expressed in the Declaration of Independence on which we were educated and raised and which serves as our identity card and lighthouse – at risk,” German wrote in her letter.
The ambassador added that she would not be able to remain in her role under these circumstances and continue to serve as Israel’s representative to France. Earlier this week, over 100 former diplomats and ambassadors sent a letter to Netanyahu warning of the damage the new government’s far-Right policies will cause to Israel’s standing in the world.