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Danon slams Sanders: ‘A liar, an ignorant fool, or both’

The ambassador blasted Sanders for calling the prime minister “racist.”

By World Israel News Staff

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is “a liar, an ignorant fool or both,” Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said at the AIPAC policy conference on Sunday in Washington, D.C.

“We don’t want Sanders at AIPAC. We don’t want him in Israel. Anyone who calls our prime minister a ‘racist’ is either a liar, an ignorant fool, or both,” Danon said.

At a Feb 25 Democratic presidential primary debate in South Carolina, Sanders said, “What I happen to believe is that, right now, sadly, tragically, in Israel, through Bibi Netanyahu, you have a reactionary racist who is now running that country.”

Sanders said in the same comment that he would consider relocating the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem back to Tel Aviv. President Donald Trump moved the Embassy to Israel’s capital on May 14, 2018 after announcing the decision in December 2017.

Sanders also said earlier that he wouldn’t attend the AIPAC conference, accusing it of “bigotry.” The pro-Israel lobbying group condemned him for the decision and noted he never attended the conference in the past.

Normally, presidential contenders attend the pro-Israel event. However, this year only one candidate, former NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg, is confirmed to attend.

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Sanders is the current front-runner in the Democratic primaries, although former Vice President Joe Biden gained an important win in South Carolina on Saturday.

Sanders has a history of making anti-Israel statements and has been accused of outright anti-Semitism by some, despite being Jewish. Among those endorsing him are controversial figures such as Linda Sarsour and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), who was voted “anti-Semite of the year” in 2019 in a poll conducted by stopantisemitism.org.