Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson apologized to the Simon Wiesenthal Center, an organization that fights antisemitism, after a crew member announced that a flight to Tel Aviv was about to land in “Palestine.”
The incident, which occurred last week, triggered protests from the passengers, who were then threatened with arrest, as Ynetnews reported:
Passengers on the Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair, were taken aback when the flight attendant announced Tel Aviv is “Palestine” on their June 10 flight from Bologna, Italy to Tel Aviv, Israel.
During the flight, passengers were told repeatedly in English and in Italian that their flight was bound for “Palestine,” and shortly before landing, the flight attendant announced the plane’s approach “into Palestine.”
…[A]ccording to passengers, instead of apologizing, the flight attendant doubled down and then accused the passengers of causing a disturbance that endangered those on the flight.
The incident triggered worldwide protest, including a letter from the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, which is named for the famed Nazi hunter. In response, Wilson apologized and said the staff member had received a warning. A statement from the Simon Wiesenthal Center explained:
Mr. Wilson’s letter stated, in part, “I am very familiar with the work of the Simon Wiesenthal Center … It is not Ryanair policy (or our crew practice) to refer to Tel Aviv as being in any country other than Israel. The crew member in question has been spoken to and received a warning to ensure that such an error is never repeated. Israel is an important partner for Ryanair. We are Israel’s second-largest airline and we plan to continue to invest in Israel to grow traffic and connectivity both for Israelis traveling to Europe and also to bring much- needed inbound tourism to Israel.
Welcoming the apology, Rabbi Cooper said, “Everyone is entitled to their opinions but not to alternative facts.”
Tel Aviv is not in disputed territory. However, groups that deny Israel’s right to exist insist that all of Israel is “Palestine.”
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.