Dutch FM kills critical EU statement on Zionist regime

Dutch Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal single-handedly killed a critical European Union statement on the occupation policies of the Zionist regime, Dutch news reports said Saturday. Rosenthal who is Jewish and whose wife is an Israeli citizen, pressured EU counterparts to amend a critical statement about Israel earlier this week, the Dutch daily NRC quoted sources in 'Brussels and other EU cities' as saying. The paper said the Netherlands did not want the text to point to 'an extremely sensitive' report by the EU’s diplomatic representation in Israel. That report lambasted Israel's policies in the occupied Palestinian territories and referred to the arrival of Jewish colonists as 'undermining the Palestinian presence.' Last September, Rosenthal reportedly managed to stop EU diplomats at the UN from agreeing on a common position on the status of human rights in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. MPs from the left-wing green party have called for an emergency debate with Rosenthal on the latest claims, saying the minister has not informed parliament properly about his standpoint and way of operating with regard to Israel. The Netherlands has long been known as Israel’s closest ally in Europe besides Germany. A major focus of Rosenthal is to deepen ties with the Zionist regime amid EU attempts to further isolate the illegal Jewish state over its highly controversial settlement policies, seen as a major obstacle to a Mideast peace agreement. Dubbed 'Israel's best friend in Europe' by the Dutch press, Rosenthal has essentially stifled any criticism of Israel. Speaking at an international conference in Israel in 2010, Rosenthal did not beat around the bush by saying, “The Dutch government doesn't appreciate Israel bashing and Israel bashing shouldn't be acceptable to anyone.' Before taking office as the country's foreign minister, Rosenthal had reportedly told the Dutch parliament that his priority was to bring an end to 'Israel bashing.' In his attempt to muzzle criticism of Israel, Rosenthal issued a stern warning to a Dutch non-governmental organisation, ICCO, which provided funding for an Internet site called the Electronic Intifada which reports on Israeli human rights violations. The Hague had also actively opposed Palestine's independence bid in the UN and