Video: US Ambassador To Belgium Howard Gutman Telling A Conference That Anti-Semitism Is Israel's Fault

Jewish News One has video of US Ambassador Howard Gutman's speech blaming Israel for Antisemitism. Here is their intro:

US ambassador to Belgium Howard Gutman, at a conference hosted by the European Jewish Union (EJU) in Brussels, Belgium, made a statement saying that there were two types of anti-Semitism: traditional anti-Jewish prejudice and a distinct strain stemming from the on-going Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The white house quickly clarified that the US condemns all forms of anti-Semitism, and Gutman expressed his regret that his comments had been misinterpreted.

In the video, ambassador Gutman says, "What I do see as a growing problem in Europe, as gaining much more attention in the newspaper, among politicians, among communities, among citizens, with a sense of alarm, is a far different phenomenon [...] It is the problem within Europe of tension, hatred, and sometimes even violence, between some members of Muslim communities or Arab immigrant groups and Jews. It's a tension and perhaps even a hatred largely born of and reflecting the tension between Israel, the Palestinian territories, and neighboring Arab states in the Middle East, over the continuing Israeli-Palestinian problem."

Ambassador Gutman has further added that he is the son of a Polish-Jewish holocaust survivor and that his personal history and the history of his family testify to the importance he attaches to fighting anti-Semitism. He has resisted calls for his resignation. Since his speech, US presidential candidate Newt Gingrich posted a Twitter update saying that Obama should fire the ambassador. Another Republican candidate, Mitt Romney, accused the ambassador of downplaying and rationalizing anti-Semitism and also demanded his dismissal.

Here is the video:

US Ambassador Howard Gutman Apologizes For His Audience 'Misinterpreting' What He Plainly Said

What is it with people who purposely set out to be provocative and then get upset when they are successful?

Following the blowback on his belittling Antisemitism, and holding Israeli policies responsible for it, Gutman blamed his gaffe on his audience:

"I strongly condemn anti-Semitism in all its forms and deeply regret that my words were misinterpreted," Gutman said, according to the US Embassy.

"My personal history and the history of my family testify to the importance I attach to this subject and my unwavering commitment to fight anti-Semitism," Gutman, who is the son of a Polish Jew who survived the Holocaust.

This follows the mild White House disclaimer that "There is never any justification 4 prejudice against the jewish people or Israel" (as tweeted by Ben Smith)

Here we have the American Ambassador to Belgium Howard Gutman's speech on Thinking About Anti-Semitism in Europe: What is Next?

He informed his audience at the start that he was:

not saying what you would expect me to say...So I likely will not just say fully what you expected and or maybe hoped to hear. I respect all of you too much to do that.

And he was right--no one expected him to play down Antisemitism the way he did.