US diplomat meets Israeli extremists

A diplomat from the US consulate in Jerusalem met the leader of an extremist Jewish organisation on Sunday following its removal from America’s list of foreign terrorist organisations. The radical Orthodox Jewish group Kahane Chai (Kach) was founded by ultranationalist Israeli Rabbi Meir Kahane in 1971. Its members have in the past killed Palestinians as well as Israeli officials.

Quds Press and Wafa reported that the unnamed diplomat met extremist Baruch Marzel at the illegal Israeli settlement of Ramat Yeshai in Hebron. The US removed the group from its terrorist list in complete disregard of its crimes against Palestinians, said Wafa.

Kach calls for the Palestinians to be deported from their homes in order to create a fully Jewish state in the land of Palestine. According to the Times of Israel, far-right Israeli MK Itamar Ben Gvir was a disciple of Meir Kahane — who was assassinated in 1990 — and heads the Otzmah Yehudit party which derived from Kach. Ben Gvir, said the Israeli newspaper, was previously active in the Kach youth movement.

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