Foreign Ministry officials apologized to new Israeli Ambassador Gil Artzyeli for not informing him in advance of the president's decision on Thursday

Source: Haaretz

Chilean president Gabriel Boric refused the new Israeli Ambassador Gil Artzyeli's credentials on Thursday.

Chilean Foreign Ministry officials apologized to new Israeli Ambassador Gil Artzyeli and the Israeli government for not informing them in advance of the president's decision.

Israel's Foreign Ministry confirmed the apology.

Boric had postponed the event organized in honor of the new Israeli ambassador until next month, sources in Santiago reported earlier.

Israeli sources said the reason for the postponement was the recent escalation in the West Bank and increased Israeli military activity against Palestinians.

In an unusual move, Artzyeli published on Tuesday a message congratulatory message following the signing of an agreement between the Chilean government and the Palestinian Authority. He referred to it as a "positive step," adding that "cooperation is key to progress, prosperity, and human development."

However, in contrast to the Israeli position, in the screenshot of the agreement attached to Artzyeli's tweet, the Palestinian Authority is referred to as the "State of Palestine."

On this, Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said there has been no change in Israel's position on the recognition of a Palestinian state.

"There is no expression of support for the Palestinian state or anything of the sort," a Foreign Ministry official said, adding that "We support economic actions that benefit the Palestinian population, but this in no way implies our recognition of a Palestinian state. The fact that you [the ambassador] quote something labeled by the Chilean authorities does not mean that you automatically stand behind it."

Chile recognized the independence of the Palestinian state more than a decade ago, and is home to a large Palestinian community numbering hundreds of thousands.