The US ambassador to Belgium’s statements on antisemitism in Belgium in the wake of a criminal investigation against Jewish mohels open a public debate on Jewish life and freedom of religion in the country and more broadly in Europe.

Israel is supporting the ambassador’s move.

On Monday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar highlighted Belgium’s antisemitism problem in a public exchange with his Belgian counterpart, Maxime Prévot. 

His remarks followed an unusual condemnation by the U.S. ambassador to Belgium, Bill White, of legal procedures against three mohels – Jewish circumcisers – in Antwerp who perform nonmedical circumcision on Jewish infants. Their criminal investigation against the three mohels followed a police raid last year on their homes where circumcision instruments were seized. A raid that shocked the local community.

In a 316-word post on X on Monday, the ambassador described the ongoing police investigation of the mohels as ‘’antisemitic.’’

His message addressed to Belgium and in particular to Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke calls on him to intervene in the legal proceedings.  “Put an end to this unacceptable harassment of the Jewish community here in Antwerp and in Belgium,” the message read.

“Either you change the accreditation procedure, or you label the prosecution of these three wonderful, religiously qualified and formidable men as anti-Semitic,” wrote Bill White.

In his view, the prosecution is “selective.” “Thousands of safe and qualified mohel procedures take place in Belgium. So why this time, why these three mohels, why in Antwerp, and why now?” he asked.

“Changing this law is something that every Jew in Belgium is demanding (thousands have contacted me today), and it is a right that your Belgian Jewish citizens, their families, and their many loyal supporters deserve immediately,” Bill White added.

‘’We want to see this prosecution dropped. They are simply doing their religious duties as they have done for 2,000 plus years safely and in a qualified professional way,’’ the ambassador said. He said he would meet with members of the community and the Antwerp Chief Rabbi.

In an interview with Radio Judaica, the radio of the local Jewish community, he explained that the potential charges against the mohels ‘’are being brought by someone who claims to be a local rabbi, someone who meets with the leadership of Iran and has no congregation to speak of. He doesn’t like these procedures. So he goes around countries causing trouble and making accusations.’’ He also reiterated its demands, in particular that of “changing the accreditation procedure” for circumcisers to bring it into line with that in force in the United States or Germany. In the United States, circumcision is a widespread practice for health reasons as, according to medical research, it lowers risk of urinary tract infection and lower risk of penile cancer.

The Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) also slammed the criminal charges against the three mohels,

“We join Ambassador White in his condemnation of these outrageous arrests, which constitute a witch-hunt against those merely fulfilling an ancient and long-standing Jewish tradition,” said CEO of Combat Antisemitism Movement Sacha Roytman Dratwa. “These arrests are having a chilling effect on the Belgian Jewish community, because it is telling them that if their traditions are not wanted, then they are not wanted.”

“To many, this is designed to make Jewish life impossible and is inherently anti-Semitic, because while intent can be debated, it is impact that matters, and this is having a massive impact on the Jewish community,” he added.

Following the ambassador’s strongly worded post, he was summoned by Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot to the foreign ministry for a rebuke. ‘’This is unacceptable,’’ Prévot said. According tot he Belgian media, a senior official of the ministry recalled the diplomatic behavior enshrined in the Vienna Convention. The ministry reiterated that Belgium “consistently and unequivocally condemns all forms of antisemitism and racism”, both at home and abroad. “This fight must be carried out together, by joining forces rather than sowing division. Unfounded accusations do not serve this goal. They weaken it.”

The ambassador claimed  that ”there was no reprimand”. ‘’They were very nice with me,’’ he said.

It is not the first time that a U.S. Ambassador is criticizing the authorities of the country where he is posted. In August last year, the U.S. Ambassador to France, Charles Kushner, criticized the ”dramatic rise of antisemitism in France” and Paris’ failure to address the threat. In a letter published in The Wall Street Joiurnal, he accused French President Emmanuel Macron of contribuiting to the escalation of antisemitism through his harsh criticism of Israel’s military action in Gaza and by announcing his intention to recognize a Palestinian state.

Ambassador White got support from Israel where several members of the government and beyond have regularly denounced an ‘’antisemitic climate’’ in Belgium.

Israel’s minister of Diaspora Affairs, Amichai Chikli, thanked White on X for White’s “determined rearguard battle” and added that “The Islamic Republic of Belgium is becoming increasingly unfit for Jewish life.”

On Monday, in a response to the Belgian Foreign Minister,  Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar mentioned recent antisemitism data relevant to Belgium. He said that Bill White’s post was a “mirror” that Prévot finds “unpleasant, but one might want to take this opportunity to take a hard look in that mirror and acknowledge reality.”

‘’Jews in Belgiumare afraid to wear a kippah in the streets. Two Jewish cemeteries were desecrated. There was an attempt to set fire to a synagogue in Antwerp. Jewish students report constant harassment and discriminatio,’’ he wrote.

“Suddenly, after thousands of years of Brith Milah being performed, the mohel community is being targeted,”

“Jewish Belgian citizens living in Judea and Samaria are denied consular services, while Belgian Muslims are welcomed,” Sa’ar also noted, referencing a recent controversy over the refusdal by the Belgian consulate in Jerusalem to renew the passports of a Belgian family living in the West Bank.

“Finally, 23 of the 27 E.U. countries have a strategic plan and a designated coordinator to combat antisemitism. Belgium does not,” Sa’ar added.

He could also add the many antisemitic incidents that occurred in the country since October 7, including posters in the streets of Brussels showing the face of Jewish leaders describing them as ‘’responsible for the genocide in  Gaza’’, the fact that Herman Brusselmans, a Flemish author and columnist was acquitted by a court in Ghent despite then fact that he wrote  that he wanted to “shove a sharp knife into the throat of every Jew.” He was cleared of charges including Holocaust denial, racism and incitement to hatred.

During Israel’s military operations against Hamas in Gaza following the October 7 massacre committed by the terrorist group in southern Israel, Belgium has been together with Spain and Ireland among the most critical towards Jerusalem, calling for sanctions, including a suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, and expressing itself in favor of a recognition of a Palestinian state under certain conditions.

Belgium is also one of four E.U. member states that have intervened on behalf of South Africa’s lawsuit against Israel for alleged genocide in Gaza at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

Religious freedom, which is a principle enshrined in the EU Convention of Fundamental Rights, is in jeopardy in Belgium not only because of thus case against Jewish circumcision but also by the fact that another Jewish ritual, the shechita or ritual animal slaughter, has been banned in Flanders and Wallonia. Jews now fear that criminalizing the Jewish male circumcision would lead to a ban of this ritual in Belgium which is a key tenet of Judaism and a practice carried out over millennia without incidents by highly-trained mohels.

In the meantime, the sole Jewish member of the Belgian federal parliament Michael Freilich, who is from Antwerp and an MP with the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) party of Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, was accused by several politiciaans of the opposition who suggested that he had asked the U.S. to intervene on the mohels issue.

Freilich denied that and told daily De Standaard that he had only asked ‘’to find a solution.’’ Some in the Jewish community speak of a ‘’public lynching’’ of the only Jewish member of parliament ‘’just for advancing a solution to regulate religious circumcision.’’

Banning circumcision would mean an end to Jewish life in Belgium which is in contradiction to the European Commission’s aim to foster Jewish life in Europe. The Commission coudn’t be reached for a comment on the issue.