A Likud lawmaker publicly rebuked former Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard Tuesday over his endorsement for the Zionist Spirit party.
MK Shlomo Karhi assailed Pollard’s announcement Tuesday morning in which he declared his support for Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked and her Zionist Spirit party.
“Because of my unqualified love of this country, and my dedication to her survival and wellbeing, I must now endorse someone who I know will serve Israel in a way that will safeguard both our core interests and our honor,” Pollard said. “That person is Ayelet Shaked.”
Karhi slammed the endorsement, alluding to Pollard’s work as an Israeli spy in the 1980s in a tweet.
“This would be like going out on another spying mission for someone who betrayed you,” Karhi wrote. “Anyone who betrays you and abandons you will do it again. Anyone who fools you once will fool you again. There is nothing new under the sun.”
The lawmaker quickly came under fire for the comment, with journalist Barak Ravid calling the post a “New level of disgusting.”
“Shlomo Karhi vs Jonathan Pollard, whose only sin was expressing support for Ayelet Shaked.”
Following the criticism, Karhi erased the original tweet, writing: “I very much respect Jonathan Pollard and his sacrifices for the people of Israel. We already are familiar with the criminal Shaked. No one needs to point out the truth about her; but in the context it sounded like criticism of Pollard, something which I really did not intend anyway.”