Today-Marchn 25
The post was “insensitive”, “inappropriate” and “completely unacceptable” as it carried the risk of undermining safety, security and harmony in Singapore, he said.
“I was very upset when I was told about it,” he told reporters at a doorstop on Monday. “And the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) spoke with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) yesterday and said that the embassy has to take the post down immediately, and they have taken it down.” The now deleted post on the Israeli embassy in Singapore Facebook page stated: “Israel is mentioned 43 times in the Quran. On the other hand, Palestine is not mentioned even once.” The post went on to say that archeological evidence such as maps, documents and coins show that Jewish people are the indigenous people of Israel. “This post is an astonishing attempt to rewrite history,” Mr Shanmugam said. “The writer of the post should look at UN (United Nations) resolutions, see if Israel’s actions in the past few decades have been consistent with international law before trying to rewrite history.” Calling the post “wrong at many levels”, Mr Shanmugam said it could have inflamed tensions as the anger from the post could spill over to the physical realm, and endanger the Jewish community in Singapore. While he said that MHA usually does not intervene in the online posts made by embassies here out of respect for their sovereignty, MHA told the Israeli embassy to take down this post after discussion with MFA because of “potential consequences” for communities in Singapore. Read more at: https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/shanmugam-israel-embassy-facebook-rewrite-history-2390186
