Tunisia's government has denounced efforts made by the Israeli government to encourage Tunisian Jews to emigrate to Israel over concerns about possible economic hardship in the North African country in the aftermath of the revolution.
The "ill-disposed" call from Israeli officials amounted to meddling in Tunisia's domestic affairs, an effort to sow suspicion, and "an attempt by Israel to tarnish the post-revolutionary image of Tunisia," the Tunisian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"Tunisia is outraged by the statements... (from) a country which still denies the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland, shamefully defying international law," it said.
The strongly worded statement sparked surprise in Israel.
"We are surprised by the fact Tunisian immigrants are flocking by their thousands at the gates of Europe and there is not a single word from the Tunisian ministry of foreign affairs," said foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor.
"Yet they hit the roof when around 20 Tunisian Jews immigrate to Israel."
Michael Jankelowitz, spokesman for the quasi-governmental Jewish Agency responsible for Jewish immigration to Israel, told AFP on Tuesday that since the uprising kicked off in December, only around 16 immigrants had arrived from Tunisia.
The Israeli cabinet on Sunday pledged extra aid to help Tunisian Jews immigrate to Israel following the revolution there.
The plan would give 15,000-18,000 shekels (4,250-5,100 dollars) to families for the first two years after they emigrate from Tunisia on top of existing benefits.
The measure comes against the background of the recent revolution that has lead to an “Islamization of the government and an increase of anti-Semitism.”
The situation is exacerbated by the difficult economic conditions in the country since the revolution.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said: "We know that there is real distress among the Jews of Tunisia, many of whom would like to immigrate to Israel. We will increase the absorption basket in order to allow them to do so. Israel is the state of the Jews. It cares for Jews wherever they are; those who are here and those who would like to come here."
Around 1,500 Jews live in Tunisia, most of them on the Mediterranean island of Djerba. It is still one of the largest Jewish population in the Arab world after Morocoo.
In 1956 they were some 100,000 Jews in the country when it won
independence from France.
Most of that number emigrated to France or Israel.
Perez Trabelsi, president of the Jewish community in Djerba, said "Israeli officials have received false information about our situation. "We are Tunisians above all, and we do not have any problems. We live like everyone else, and no Jew is going to leave the country." In February, an Islamist anti-Jewish demonstration outside the main Tunis synagogue raised fear for the security of Tunisian Jews.