Staunch parliamentary friends of Israel are urging Jerusalem to keep on open mind about Britain’s new foreign secretary, Douglas Hurd, who has a reputation for being mildly pro-Arab, but is also fair-minded and an experienced, respected diplomat.
Israel may not be happy about his appointment, but if it “perceives him as an enemy, they will not listen to him,” said Laborite Greville Janner, a senior Jewish member of Parliament.
Robert Rhodes James, chairman of the Conservative Friends of Israel in Parliament, said Hurd was “a longstanding friend of Israel,” who was “experienced and open-minded on the Middle East. He is a real professional and knows the area and the problems.”
While he was minister of state for foreign affairs at the Foreign Office in the early 1980s, Hurd criticized Israel for invading Lebanon and for building settlements in the West Bank.
Hurd, a 14-year career diplomat, served in Beijing, Rome and at the United Nations.
His appointment as foreign secretary followed the government crisis over the resignation of Nigel Lawson as chancellor of the exchequer. Lawson, a Jew, was replaced by John Major, who had been foreign secretary.
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