Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 12: The Indian National Congress has issued a strong condemnation of Israel's Ambassador to India for his response to a post by party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra regarding the conflict in Gaza. The Congress party, through its General Secretary Jairam Ramesh, called the ambassador’s comments "totally unacceptable."

Gandhi Vadra had expressed her "pain and anguish" over the situation, describing Israel's actions as "genocide" and citing figures of over 60,000 deaths, including more than 18,000 children. She also accused the Indian government of "shameful" silence on the matter.

In response, Israeli Ambassador Reuven Azar called Gandhi Vadra's statements a "shameful deceit." He defended Israel's military actions, claiming the deaths were a result of Hamas's tactics of "hiding behind civilians." Azar also disputed the casualty figures, stating that Israel had killed 25,000 Hamas terrorists. He further claimed that Israel had facilitated two million tons of food into Gaza and pointed to the region's population growth as evidence against claims of genocide.

Jairam Ramesh, in turn, criticized the Narendra Modi-led government for its "extreme moral cowardice" and failure to speak out against what the Congress calls the "destruction of Gaza." He added that the party found the ambassador's response to be a significant breach of diplomatic decorum. The incident has since ignited a debate on social media, with many users, including politicians and veterans, accusing the envoy of crossing diplomatic boundaries.