Wilders Ends Israel Solidarity Tour With Falafel in Jerusalem

Dutch opposition politician Geert Wilders concluded a three-day visit to Israel on Monday after touring Jerusalem and Samaria, meeting senior officials and voicing support for Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria.

Wilders came as a guest of Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan. The visit took place as the Dutch government prepares to restrict the import and sale of products from Israeli communities it considers illegal, a policy Wilders condemned before traveling.

“The Netherlands is sanctioning Israel. I am deeply ashamed of the betrayal by the Dutch government,” the Party for Freedom leader wrote.

The center of the trip was Sa-Nur, one of four northern Samaria communities evacuated under Israel’s 2005 Disengagement Plan. Israel later repealed legal restrictions that had barred Israelis from returning to the area.

Dagan presented Wilders with a plan calling for the establishment of 19 communities in northern Samaria. Standing at the site, Wilders strongly backed renewed Jewish settlement.

“Twenty-one years ago, you were expelled from here, and now you are returning with a huge plan to resettle all of Samaria,” he said. “I am very proud of you. This is the only way.”

Wilders also linked Israel’s security struggle to threats facing Europe.

“It affects the security of Europe and the security of the Netherlands,” he said. “Everything is connected, so we are working together and we will win together.”

During the visit, Wilders met Defense Minister Israel Katz for talks on Israel’s security challenges, terrorism and international alliances. Katz praised him as a consistent supporter of the country. “Israel cherishes its true friends,” Katz said.

Wilders responded that Israel “is at the forefront of the free world’s fight against terrorism and radical Islam.”

The Dutch politician also visited the family of Benayahu Melt during shiva at Havat Gilad. Melt, a member of the community’s emergency response team, was killed in Friday’s shooting attack near the community.

“Your husband was a true hero,” Wilders told the family. “Millions of people in Europe support you and feel your pain. You are not alone. The spirit can never be defeated.”

Wilders later visited the Western Wall, where he presented his support for Israel as a longstanding commitment rather than a response to the current conflict.

“I am proud to be a friend of Israel. Always have been and always will be,” he wrote. “So I come here not only in peacetime but also in times of terror and war.”

Wilders has visited Israel repeatedly and lived in the country during his youth. He also previously toured Samaria with Dagan, making the latest trip part of a long-running political and personal connection to Israel.

He ended the visit on a lighter note, eating falafel in Jerusalem with Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana and Dagan.