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HR Prompts The Guardian to Downgrade Palestinian ‘Ambassador’

Another day, another story concerning UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and antisemitism. This time a visit to a Palestinian cemetery in Tunisia where he laid a wreath at a ceremony honoring members of the…

Simon Plosker
August 19, 2018
12:00 am

Reading time: 2 minutes

The Guardian quoted “Palestine’s ambassador to the UK”:

The UK has not officially recognized a Palestinian state. That is why there is a Palestinian Mission in the UK as opposed to an embassy. Manuel Hassassian may proclaim himself an ambassador on the website but according to diplomatic protocol, and the UK government’s own list of diplomatic representatives (xls file), his official title is “Head of Mission” rather than “Ambassador.”

The Palestinians do have embassies in numerous countries that have recognized Palestinian statehood, predominantly in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East.

The UK is not one of those countries however.

Following our complaint to The Guardian, the following correction was issued:

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Tags: ambassador, embassy, envoy, Head of Mission, Jeremy Corbyn, Manuel Hassassian, Misleading terminology, palestinian, success, The Guardian

Simon Plosker

With over two decades of experience in various non-governmental organizations in the UK and Israel, Simon Plosker returned to HonestReporting in October 2022 as Editorial Director having previously been part of the organization’s management team from 2005 to 2020. Prior to his first spell at HonestReporting, Simon worked in Israel for NGO Monitor, BICOM, and served for a short period in the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit. He was Managing Editor of the Geneva-based NGO United Nations Watch for two years before moving back to the frontline defending Israel from media bias. Simon has a BSoc.Sc in International Studies and Political Science from the University of Birmingham and an MSc in History of International Relations from the London School of Economics. He immigrated to Israel in 2001 from London.

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