Wilders was reportedly invited by the Likud party, which Dagan is a powerbroker for [GETTY]
Far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders was invited to visit Israel in December, reportedly as a guest of the governing Likud Party.
This comes after the Dutch Parliament voted to sanction the party’s powerbroker and prominent Israeli settler leader, Yossi Dagan for “supporting violent settlers in the construction of new settlements and the expulsion of Palestinians in the West Bank”.
Wilders, who heads the Party for Freedom (PVV) that dominates the Dutch government, reportedly planned to visit the occupied West Bank, including illegal settlements.
According to Dutch media, Wilders was invited to visit the state by the governing party, and the invitation was signed by Science Minister Gila Gamliel and Dagan.
Dagan is a key leader in settlements in the occupied West Bank. His council supports and funds illegal settler outposts and has lobbied the Knesset to renew settlements in Gaza since 7 October last year.
Wilders is known to maintain close relations with Israeli leaders, having met the state’s president Isaac Herzog in Amsterdam, speaking on the phone with Netanyahu and meeting with Sa’ar after Israeli hooligans instigated riots in Amsterdam.
After arrest warrants were issued for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Ministry of Defence Yoav Gallant, Wilders wrote on X that he was “proud” to meet “his friend Netanyahu in Israel soon”.
The Israeli figures are wanted by the International Criminal Court in connection to alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel in Gaza.
Speaking to Haaretz, Kati Piri, an opposition politician from the Labour Party, said that Wilder’s visit would be “a clear provocation toward his own coalition and government” and “would heavily damage the Netherlands’ long-standing credibility” and its “core” commitment to a two-state solution.
The Netherlands was among the few European nations that would cooperate with the ICC and act on the warrants should Netanyahu and Gallant enter their territories.
Wilders is known for his Islamophobic and far-right views, from wanting to ban mosques, calling the Prophet Muhammad a “paedophile” to describing Islam as a “fascist ideology” and a backwards religion and calling to ban mosques and the Quran.
The politician was also convicted in 2016 of inciting hatred against Moroccans after calling them “scum” at an election rally.
