Netanyahu Says Germany’s Gabriel Rejected Phone Call After Cancelled Meeting

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel refused to take his phone call after their meeting was cancelled, in an interview with a newspaper on Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Netanyahu called off the talks on Tuesday after the visiting German diplomat ignored requests to skip a planned meeting with a pro-Palestinian rights group. Gabriel said he regretted the Israeli decision.

"I tried to call Gabriel to explain my position and smooth it over, but he rejected the call," Netanyahu confessed to the Bild newspaper, adding his stance was not to meet diplomats who come to Israel to meet with groups that accuse Israeli soldiers of war crimes.

Gabriel met with activists from an organization called Breaking the Silence, which claims the Israeli army committed war crimes against civilians in war zones, such as the Israeli-occupied West Bank.