U.S. Slams ‘Offensive' Comments by Netanyahu Aide

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new spokesman on Thursday apologized for a series of insulting comments about President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry, days before his boss heads to Washington on a fence-mending mission, The Associated Press reported.

The apology from Ran Baratz, issued through Netanyahu's office, cast a cloud over Monday's visit.

Netanyahu and Obama have had a chilly relationship over the years, and the meeting is meant in part to repair ties after repeated clashes over the U.S.-led nuclear deal with Iran.

Netanyahu announced Baratz's appointment as his chief spokesman late Wednesday, and soon after, old Facebook posts had emerged in which Baratz suggested that Obama is anti-Semitic and Kerry cannot be taken seriously. He also derided Israel's popular president as "marginal."

The State Department called Baratz's comments "troubling and offensive."

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