Israeli embassy sparks controversy with disturbing video depicting imaginary attack on Koreans
The Israeli embassy in South Korea has come under scrutiny for a now-removed video that portrayed a fictional scenario involving masked assailants attacking Koreans in Seoul, drawing a parallel to the conflict with Hamas.
Seoul’s foreign ministry issued a statement on Thursday deeming the video “inappropriate” and requested its removal.
The video, originally posted on the embassy’s Facebook account, depicted a distressing scene where a South Korean woman in the capital is abducted by an armed assailant on Christmas Day, forcibly separated from her young daughter.
The Israeli embassy captioned the video, stating, “On October 7th, Israel was attacked by Hamas terrorists. 1,200 men, women, and children were killed, and over 240 people were taken hostage in Gaza. Imagine if it happened to you. What would you do?”
Israel’s ambassador in Seoul, Akiva Tor, justified the video in a now-deleted social media post, stating, “We have reconstructed the horrifying terrorist incident that took place on October 7th to help South Koreans in East Asia, far away from Israel, understand the current war situation.”
South Korea, still technically at war with North Korea, expressed its discontent, emphasizing that while the killing and kidnapping of Israeli civilians by Hamas cannot be justified, drawing parallels to another country’s security situation was deemed inappropriate.
YTN, a South Korean broadcaster, reported on Israel’s relentless campaign against Hamas in retaliation for the October 7th attack, resulting in a considerable death toll and hostages taken by Palestinian militants.
The conflict has escalated tensions and sparked global concern.
In response to the criticism, South Korea’s foreign ministry stated, “The killing and kidnapping of Israeli civilians by Hamas cannot be justified, but the Israeli Embassy’s production and distribution of a video drawing parallels to the security situation in another country was deemed inappropriate.”
The ministry confirmed that it had conveyed its position to the Israeli Embassy, leading to the removal of the controversial video.
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