The criticism was presented, according to her own statement, at a meeting with the Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.
We have a very close relationship with Israel and when you have that, you can also present criticism and standpoints where you don't agree, said Malmer Stenergard to Swedish journalists during a briefing in Jerusalem on Wednesday.
She says that it was a constructive dialogue with Gideon Saar, even though Israel and Sweden have "partially" different opinions on the matter. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz noted that, unlike other similar visits, no press conference was held after the meeting.
In addition to Jerusalem, the Foreign Minister also visited Ramallah on the West Bank, where she met the Palestinian Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed Mustafa. She was also in the kibbutz Nir Oz, two kilometers from the border to Gaza, where Israelis were murdered and taken hostage during the Hamas terror attack against Israel on October 7, 2023.
But there were no opportunities to visit Gaza, even if she had considered it. She describes the situation there as "extremely difficult".
She also had meetings with think tanks working for a sustainable peace and aid organizations.
Far too many, nearly 300 aid workers have been killed, says Maria Malmer Stenergard.
She does not want to comment on whether Israel has responded disproportionately harshly to Hamas and Gaza since the terror attack from Hamas in 2023. That is, according to her, a matter for the courts to decide.
