Israel said it will bar a planned visit by two US congresswomen who have supported a boycott of the country over its treatment of the Palestinians, a decision strongly encouraged by President Donald Trump.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the highly unusual move against Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib necessary, charging that their "sole purpose is to harm Israel and increase incitement against it".
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:
— PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) August 15, 2019
No country in the world respects America and the American Congress more than the State of Israel.
As a free and vibrant democracy, Israel is open to critics and criticism
US politicians called on Israel to reconsider, while senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi labelled it "an outrageous act of hostility against the American people and their representatives".
Ms Omar said it was a "chilling" decision and an "insult to democratic values."
Ms Omar and Ms Tlaib, who is of Palestinian origin, were expected to arrive in Israel at the weekend for a visit that would have taken them to the Palestinian territories.
Before Israel announced its decision, relatives of Ms Tlaib in the family's village of Beit Ur Al-Foqa in the occupied West Bank had been excited about her planned visit.
"We are preparing a party for her" and her fellow congresswoman, said Ms Tlaib's 85-year-old grandmother, Muftia Tlaib, in the yard of the family's stone home surrounded by olive trees.
This woman right here is my sity. She deserves to live in peace & with human dignity. I am who I am because of her. The decision by Israel to bar her granddaughter, a U.S. Congresswoman, is a sign of weakness b/c the truth of what is happening to Palestinians is frightening. pic.twitter.com/GGcFLiH9N3
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) August 15, 2019
Israeli officials said they would consider a separate humanitarian request from Ms Tlaib to visit her family, a trip for which she would have to pass through Israel.
Israel announced its decision shortly after Mr Trump called on the country to bar the Democratic congresswomen.
President Trump said on twitter: "It would show great weakness if Israel allowed Rep. Omar and Rep. Tlaib to visit."
He continued with typical bombast: "They hate Israel & all Jewish people, & there is nothing that can be said or done to change their minds. Minnesota and Michigan will have a hard time putting them back in office. They are a disgrace!"
Representatives Omar and Tlaib are the face of the Democrat Party, and they HATE Israel!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 15, 2019
Ms Tlaib is from Michigan and Ms Omar from Minnesota, both are outspoken critics of the US president, who has a close relationship with Mr Netanyahu.
Prime Minister Netanyahu alleged the itinerary of the congresswomen showed they intended to strengthen the boycott movement against Israel.
Mr Netanyahu said: "As a vibrant and free democracy, Israel is open to any critic and criticism, with one exception.
"Israel's law prohibits the entry of people who call and act to boycott Israel, as is the case with other democracies that prevent the entry of people whom they see as harming the country."
In 2017, Israel passed a law banning entry to foreigners who support boycotting the country, in response to a movement that advocates such an embargo.
Israel sees the movement as a strategic threat and accuses it of anti-Semitism, a claim activists deny.
Both Ms Omar and Ms Tlaib have been critical of Israel's occupation of the West Bank and treatment of Palestinians.
The Democrats have also faced accusations of anti-Semitism, which they firmly deny.
Israel's ambassador to the US, Ron Dermer, had previously signalled the two would be allowed to visit out of respect for the US, Israel's most important ally.
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, called Israel's denial of entry to the two congresswomen "a sign of weakness, and beneath the dignity of the great State of Israel".
She called the move a "sad reversal" of the position earlier set out by Dermer and "deeply disappointing".
Israel's denial of entry to Congresswomen Tlaib & Omar is beneath the dignity of the great State of #Israel. @realDonaldTrump's statements about the Congresswomen are a sign of ignorance & disrespect, & beneath the dignity of the Office of the President. https://t.co/F2E0g0Wj2T
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) August 15, 2019
Elizabeth Warren, a leading candidate for the Democratic nomination, said "Israel doesn't advance its case as a tolerant democracy... by barring elected members of Congress from visiting".
Known as "the squad," the two congresswomen, along with two other progressive congressional allies, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley, have been in Mr Trump's crosshairs.
He has taken aim at all four in the, past telling them to "go back" where they came from and accusing them of "love" for America's "enemies like Al-Qaeda".
Ms Tlaib and Ms Omar, who fled war-torn Somalia as a child and arrived in the US as a refugee, are the first two Muslim women elected to Congress.
Ms Tlaib is also the first woman of Palestinian descent in Congress.
Members of Congress are regular visitors to Israel and the Palestinian territories and blocking them is highly unusual.
It comes at a time when Jewish groups in the US have expressed concern over whether bipartisan support for Israel in Washington is eroding.
Democratic candidates for president in the US have openly criticised Mr Netanyahu, who is seeking re-election in Israel on 17 September after polls earlier this year failed to yield a coalition.
Influential US pro-Israel lobby AIPAC said it disagreed with the views of the congresswomen, but opposed the decision to bar them.
