Barred Israeli MP’s Views Not Extreme: Jewish Community Questions Australia’s Visa Ban

Simcha Rothman has also asserted that his political position is shared by the left and right of Israeli politics.

Israeli Member of Parliament (Knesset) Simcha Rothman of the Religious Zionist party chairs a session of the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee in Jerusalem, Israel on March 20, 2023. Gil Cohen-Magen-MAGEN/AFP via Getty Images

The last-minute cancellation of Israeli politician Simcha Rothman’s visa ahead of his planned visit to Australia is misguided, says a leader of the Jewish community.

Rothman, a member of the National Religious Party–Religious Zionism, is part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition in the country’s parliament known as the Knesset.