Israel’s deputy foreign minister said Brazil is likely to fuel a diplomatic crisis by withholding consent for its choice of ambassador, a former settler leader.
Israel’s deputy foreign minister, Tzipi Hotovely, said on Dec. 27 that the Jewish state will use a number of channels to secure the nomination of Dani Dayan, saying no other name will be put up for the post.
Brazil President Dilma Rousseff is believed to have withheld consent because of Dayan’s settler background.
Brazil has not officially signaled its apparent objection to Dayan since he was confirmed by the Israeli Cabinet in September and the end of the current envoy’s term. In September, Rousseff expressed discomfort with his appointment, saying it would signal “support for the settlement enterprise.”
The Argentine-born Dayan, 50, a former head of the Yesha Council of Jewish settlements, was tapped for the post by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in August. The following month, Rousseff sent a back-channel message disapproving of Dayan’s appointment after leftist Brazilians and Israelis lobbied against it, but has taken no official action.
If the Israeli government does not act in Dayan’s case, it could create a precedent barring settlers from representing Israel abroad. — jta