A US Jewish group exressed "surprise and disappointment" at the "one-sided" remarks by British Prime Minister David Cameron, in which he condemned the Israeli attack on a Turkish ship bound for Gaza as "completely unacceptable" and described Gaza as "a prison camp."
Cameron’s remarks came during a speech this week in Turkey where the British Prime Minister urged Israel and Turkey "not to give up" on their relationship in the aftermath of the flotilla incident in May.
"We are surprised and disappointed that Prime Minister Cameron has resorted to the same kind of inflammatory rhetoric that has been used by Israel’s enemies to describe the humanitarian situation in Gaza,” said Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a New York-based organization dedicated to fighting anti-Semitism.
"We would have thought that given Israel’s important relationship with Great Britain, the Prime Minister would have more carefully considered his words about the complex situation facing Gazans and the security challenges facing Israel," he added.
The ADL stressed that since coming to office, Cameron’s government has underscored that Britain is a good friend of Israel.
"The lack of context in this case is disturbing, especially in light of the recent Israeli decision to allow significantly more items to enter Gaza. We hope he will quickly find an opportunity to clarify his unfortunate statements," Foxman said.