The American ambassador to Israel attacked an Israeli leftwing newspaper Friday, questioning whether it had any "dignity" after a vitriolic column. The quarrel erupted after Haaretz newspaper criticised US Ambassador David Friedman, personally selected by President Donald Trump, for his support of settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.
In the wake of the murder of an Israeli rabbi and father of four from the Har Bracha settlement on Monday, Friedman tweeted that he had provided an ambulance for the community 20 years ago. Friedman then criticised Palestinian "leaders" for praising the killing, although Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said nothing about it.
In response Haaretz, which opposes settlement building in the Palestinian territories, ran a column by commentator Gideon Levy saying that "with Friedman's ambulance or without it, Har Bracha (literally, 'Mountain of Blessing') is a mountain of curses."