The inclusion of the far-right politicians led Jewish personalities to cancel their participation to the confetence scheduled to take place next week.

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel said these partiers have proven their pro-Israeli and pro-Jewish position. ”This is wahat is important for us.”

Israel recently lifted its boycott of three far-right parties in France, Spain and Sweden and held discreet talks with them.

The process of establishing ties with the National Rally in France, Vox in Spain and the Swedish Democrats party was reportedly initiated under former Foreign Minister Israel Katz, who was said to have ordered a review of the parties’ attitude toward Israel and alleged histories of antisemitism before leaving office in November.

Since then, the current Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar established contacts with the three parties.

The minister reportedly instructed diplomats to “inform the heads of Jewish organizations of the decision and coordinate with them in advance of any contacts with the three parties.’’

Following the review’s conclusion, Sa’ar reportedly decided to rule out “at this stage” ties with the Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the Freedom Party of Austria, which have both been rocked by antisemitism scandals.

Before that, the government already established relations with the governing Party of Freedom in the Netherlands, which is led by pro-Israel figure Geert Wilders.

However, an important international conference on antisemitism organized by the Israeli Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, scheduled to take place in Jerusalem next week, was hemorrhaging after various planned  participants backed out due to the inclusion of the far-right lawmakers, despite their strong support for Israel.

The two lawmakers are Jordan Bardella, President of the National Rally and leader of the Patriots for Europe in the EU parliament, as well as Marion Maréchal, the granddaughter of the National Rally founder, Jean-Marie le Pen, who was convicted several times for denying the Holocasut.

Herman Tertsch, a Spanish member of the European Parliament from the pro-Israel Vox party, has also been invited to the conference, as well as Charlie Weimers MEP from the Swedish Democrats.

The two-day International Conference on Combating Antisemitism, which will take place 26-27 March – includes top Israeli government leaders and experts from around the globe.

The first to cancel his participation was French philosopher and author Bernard-Henry Lévy, who is known for his pro-Israel stance.

He was followed by UK Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and German Commissioner for Combating Antisemitism Felix Klein, as well as Jonathan  Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League.

They explained the inclusion of the far-right politicians was unacceptable to them in light of their parties’ history, irrespective of the lawmakers’ current support for Israel.

According to media reports, Israel’s President Isaac Herzog also distanced himself from the conference over the inclusion of the far-right European politicians. The president was due to host the conference members at his Jerusalem residence but he finally decided to only host world Jewish leaders.

According to Deputy Foreign Miniuster Sharren Haskel, the question is not about having ties with far-right parties but about their position on Israel and the fight against antisemitism. ‘’All what I see is if they are pro-Israel and friends of the Jews,’’ she told reporters this week on a press trip in Israel organized by Europe Israel Press Association (EIPA) and its American branch AMEPA.

‘’The political parties with which we have establish contacts have expulsed their bad elements and renounced the antisemitic past,’’ she added.

Israeli statesman and former Soviet refusenik Natan Sharansky, who will address the conference, stressed that the totality of the map opposing antisemitism needs to be heard.

“It is important for the fight against antisemitism to include all political camps—from left to right,” he wrote. “Those who continue to hold onto antisemitic views obviously have no place in conferences against antisemitism. However, those who claim to have changed their views towards Jews certainly deserve to be heard,’’he said.