US Embassy changes, then changes back Twitter name
The name changed sparked speculation on social media that the Biden administration had forced the change, though the title had not been changed on the embassy website.
By LAHAV HARKOVThe US ambassador to Israel Twitter account when it was briefly changed.(photo credit: screenshot)
The US ambassador to Israel’s Twitter name was changed to say he is also ambassador to the West Bank and Gaza on Wednesday, before it was quickly changed back.On midday Wednesday, David Friedman stopped being ambassador to the US, and the US ambassador to Israel Twitter account no longer bore his name; it was replaced with “US Ambassador to Israel, the West Bank and Gaza.”The name changed sparked speculation on social media that the Biden administration had forced the change, though the title had not been changed on the embassy website.Soon after, the Twitter account was changed back to “US Ambassador to Israel.”The addition of the West Bank and Gaza reflects the Trump administration’s elimination of the role of a separate consul to the Palestinians, which was merged into the ambassador to Israel’s role, though his formal title was not changed.President Joe Biden has said that he intends to return to the policy of appointing a consul to the Palestinians, separate from the ambassador to Israel.An embassy spokesperson said the initial, longer title “was an inadvertent edit.”“This is not a policy change or indication of future policy change,” she said.
