Colombia's embassy will open in Jerusalem: The "carnival" the Foreign Ministry is planning - and the criticism
The Israeli Foreign Ministry is planning a festive event in a Latin carnival style to mark the opening of the Colombian embassy in Jerusalem, the tenth embassy of a foreign country in the city. The event will be held in the presence of Colombian Foreign Minister Omar Bula Escobar and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar. The Foreign Ministry hired an external production company at a cost of tens of thousands of shekels, an unusual step that sparked internal criticism over economic efficiency.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry will hold a festive event tomorrow (Wednesday) in a Latin carnival style to mark the inauguration of the Colombian embassy in Jerusalem, which will be the tenth embassy of a foreign country in the city. The embassy will be inaugurated in offices on Rabbi Akiva Street in central Jerusalem, in the presence of Colombian Foreign Minister Omar Bula Escobar, who landed in Israel today, and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar. Israeli Ambassador to Colombia Vivian Aizen welcomed the minister upon his arrival. The Israeli Foreign Ministry will finance the rental of the building in Jerusalem, as is done with most countries that have moved their embassies to the city. In the evening, a festive event will be held with the participation of the foreign ministers, mayors, businesspeople, and diplomats. To produce the event, the Foreign Ministry took the unusual step of hiring an external production company at a cost of tens of thousands of shekels. The professional level at the ministry is excluded from the content. The ministry claims that the engagement led to cost reduction, but sources within the ministry cast doubt on this claim. In the ministry's response, it was stated that this is a dramatic diplomatic move to strengthen Israel's status in Latin America, and that the event is intended to encourage additional countries to move their embassies to Jerusalem.