President Lee Jae Myung speaks at a meeting held with labor unions at the Blue House in central Seoul on April 10. [NEWS1]
Korean President Lee Jae Myung continued his spat with Israel for the third day on Sunday with an online post indirectly aimed at the Israeli government, following his controversial comparison of the Holocaust with the sexual slavery of “comfort women” during Japanese Colonial Rule (1910-1945).
“The sovereignty of each country and universal human rights must be respected, and aggressive war must be denied,” Lee wrote on X on Sunday. “That is the spirit of our Constitution and the common sense of the international community.”
A day earlier, he wrote of the Israeli government that “It is disappointing that it does not seem willing to reflect, even once, on the criticism from people around the world who are suffering due to its repeated anti-human rights and anti-international law actions.”
The posts came as Lee issued direct rebuttals for a second consecutive day after Israel’s Foreign Ministry protested using strong language, saying the remarks were “unacceptable” and deserved “condemnation.”
The controversy began on Thursday when Lee shared an X post and related video claiming that the Israel Defense Forces had tortured a Palestinian and thrown the person off a rooftop.
“If this is true, we should find out what measures were taken,” Lee wrote. “There is no difference from the forced mobilization of comfort women, the Holocaust or wartime killings that we take issue with.”
Four hours later, he added clarification, writing, “The video shows an incident that occurred in September 2024, which the White House described as ‘deeply disturbing,’ and at least it was not a living person but a body,” while emphasizing, “Human rights are the last line of defense and a value that cannot be exchanged for anything, anywhere, for any reason.”
An X post uploaded by President Lee Jae Myung on April 10 [SCREEN CAPTURE]
The conservative People Power Party (PPP) sharply criticized Lee.
Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok accused Lee of “spreading ‘fake news’ and creating a diplomatic risk,” and called him “a diplomatic liability from the public's perspective.” Floor leader Song Eon-seog questioned whether Lee's actions were “truly in the national interest for the president to continue a diplomatic clash with the Israeli government during a sensitive Middle East conflict,” while senior spokesperson Choi Bo-yoon criticized Lee's "‘selective human rights’ — remaining silent on North Korea while lecturing the international community — neither national interest, diplomacy nor human rights can be protected.”
On the other hand, the Democratic Party criticized the Israeli government.
Former party leader Song Young-gil urged Netanyahu to “listen to President Lee’s remarks, refrain from escalating military tensions with Lebanon and cooperate in negotiations for a cease-fire and an end to the war.” Lawmaker Han Jun-ho defended Lee's remarks as “simply basic common sense not to turn away from someone’s suffering,” adding that “Israel’s reaction to that common sense raises more questions.” Lawmaker Park Beom-kye added, “What was wrong with the president’s original tweet? The problem lies with the Israeli government.”
A different part of Lee's Sunday X post caused another set of debates.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Jerusalem on March 19. [REUTERS/YONHAP]
The X post included parts that read, “Those who harm national interests for personal gain are called traitors. Even in politics and the media, where pursuing the public interest is the mission, acts of treachery occur openly.”
A presidential office official said the message was intended to emphasize universal human rights and asked that it not be politically exploited or framed as a diplomatic issue. However, PPP lawmaker Na Kyung-won criticized the remark, saying, “He is lashing out by calling the media and the public ‘traitors’ for criticizing the ‘Israel fake news diplomatic fiasco,’ showing the height of shamelessness.”
The government is focusing on managing the situation to prevent political controversy from escalating into diplomatic friction.
The Foreign Ministry expressed regret over Israel’s reaction on Friday while stating, “We always share in the pain of the Holocaust.” The statement was seen as an effort to prevent the spread of accusations of antisemitism by adding a message of sympathy.
“We are explaining to the Israeli side that remarks by ruling party figures are part of domestic political messaging ahead of the June local elections,” said a source, who wished to remain anonymous. “The government plans to respond by separating politicians’ rhetoric from official policy.”
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
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