In this Monday, Oct. 26, 2015 file photo, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the official memorial ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the assassination of the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in the Mt. Herzl Cemetery in Jerusalem. Netanyahu鈥檚 newly appointed spokesman Ron Baratz on Thursday, Nov. 5, apologized for a series of insulting comments about President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry, days before his boss heads to Washington on fence-mending mission. Pool Photo via AP File Photo
JERUSALEM, Israel鈥擨sraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu鈥檚 new top media adviser came under fire Thursday for controversial past comments, including some accusing US President Barack Obama of anti-Semitism.
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The controversy surrounding Ran Baratz erupted as Netanyahu prepares to meet Obama in Washington Monday as part of efforts to heal rifts over the Iran nuclear deal, among other issues.
Netanyahu鈥檚 office announced Baratz鈥檚 appointment as the premier鈥檚 head of public diplomacy and media on Wednesday, and Israeli news sites have since dug up a string of comments he has made.
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In March, Baratz wrote about Obama on his Facebook page after Netanyahu addressed the US Congress to express opposition to the Iran deal. The speech drew heavy criticism from Obama.
鈥淥bama鈥檚 way of speaking about Netanyahu鈥檚 speech鈥攖hat is the modern face of anti-Semitism in Western and liberal countries,鈥� Baratz wrote.
鈥淎nd that comes, of course, with much tolerance and understanding toward Islamic anti-Semitism.鈥�
Netanyahu condemned the remarks Thursday, while Baratz apologised.
鈥淭hey are inappropriate and do not reflect my positions nor government policy,鈥� the premier posted on Twitter. He said he would meet Baratz after he returns home from the United States.
Baratz said they 鈥渨ere written without thinking and sometimes as jokes in language which is appropriate for social networks and for a private person.鈥�
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was 鈥渞eadily apparent that that apology was warranted.鈥�
Secretary of State John Kerry鈥攚ho was also among Baratz鈥檚 targets鈥攕poke with Netanyahu about the matter by phone Thursday.
Baratz鈥檚 comments 鈥渨ere troubling and offensive,鈥� State Department spokesman John Kirby said.
鈥淲e obviously expect government officials from any country, especially our closest allies, to speak respectfully and truthfully about senior US government officials,鈥� he added.
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Besides his comments on Obama, Baratz reportedly wrote that Kerry鈥檚 鈥渕ental age鈥� was no older than 12.
He also spoke of Israeli President Reuven Rivlin in withering terms, saying that even the Islamic State group would not want him as a hostage.
Baratz recently wrote on Facebook that Rivlin, whose position is mainly ceremonial, was 鈥渟uch a marginal figure鈥� that he had nothing to fear.
鈥淲e could send him by paraglider to the Syrian Golan controlled by ISIS鈥� and they would want to send him back, he wrote.
Rivlin鈥檚 office has reportedly asked Netanyahu鈥檚 office for explanations regarding the comments about him.
In addition, the 42-year-old resident of a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank supported calls in 2004 for the construction of a new Jewish temple at the extremely sensitive Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.
Both Jews and Muslims revere the compound as sacred. Jews are allowed to visit but not pray there to avoid provoking tensions.
Clashes between Israeli police and Palestinians at the compound in September preceded a recent wave of deadly violence that has provoked fears of a full-scale Palestinian uprising.
Baratz鈥檚 appointment is to be submitted for cabinet approval, and some ministers have said they will oppose it.
Social Equality Minister Gila Gamliel said the comments 鈥渦ndermine the symbols of our government and those of our greatest ally, and may be misconstrued as an official stance,鈥� according to Haaretz newspaper.