As Israel's foreign ministry issued a condemnation statement over President Lee Jae-myung's post, voices of concern are emerging within the Korean community in Israel.
Lee Kang-geun, head of the Korean Association in Israel, said on his Facebook page on the 11th, "President Lee Jae-myung's remarks are hot," adding, "With this one act, did you think about the scorn that Koreans living in Israel will have to endure?"
The president a day earlier shared on his X a video raising allegations that the Israel Defense Forces tortured Palestinian children and voiced criticism. With the video, the president said, "There is no difference between the killing of Jews and killings during wartime."
Israel's foreign ministry immediately responded to the president's criticism. The ministry said, "On the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, remarks were made that belittled the killing of Jews," adding, "We strongly condemn this."
As Israel reacted strongly to the president's remarks, concern is also being voiced within the local Korean community.
Lee said, "The incident happened two years ago, so why post it now?" adding, "It makes things really hard."
In fact, the video in question is known to have been filmed in 2024.
Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also moved to defuse the controversy. Through X, the ministry said, "We regret that Israel's foreign ministry misunderstood the intent of a post in which the president expressed a belief in universal human rights, rather than an opinion on a specific issue, and responded to it."