Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli has boasted of helping to legitimise British far-right activist Tommy Robinson, describing him as “one of the important figures” and “one of our great friends in Britain”. The remarks captured on video offer a striking insight into Israel’s growing alliance with nationalist and far-right movements across Europe.
Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli on Britain:
We broke the boycott against Tommy Robinson, who is one of the important figures and one of our great friends in Britain.
We are connected not only by the fight against radical Islam, but also by shared values. pic.twitter.com/WwYqkMbHf8
— Clash Report (@clashreport) August 8, 2026
“We broke the boycott against Tommy Robinson, who is one of the important figures and one of our great friends in Britain,” Chikli said.
Chikli, whose official portfolio includes combating anti-Semitism, went on to claim credit for ending what he described as the political isolation of France’s far-right Rassemblement National, Spain’s Vox party and Robinson.
“I’m very proud that I helped bring about the breaking of the boycott against France’s Rassemblement National, the breaking of the boycott against Spain’s Vox party, and the breaking of the foolish boycott against Tommy Robinson, whom I consider one of the most important people we have and one of our greatest friends in Britain,” he said.
READ: Pro-Israel think tank funds Tommy Robinson’s legal costs
Explaining what he called the “sociological element” behind his strategy, Chikli contrasted Jewish communities, which he characterised as disproportionately composed of doctors, lawyers, academics and other professionals connected to political and cultural elites, with what he described as more traditional and nationalist sections of the wider population.
Those elites, Chikli argued, are often associated with “post-national agendas”, whereas “ordinary people” are more likely to hold traditional, religious and nationalist views.
Chikli suggested that Israel should therefore focus less on winning support among European academic elites and more on building alliances with conservative and nationalist movements capable of mobilising wider sections of the public.
“If we can win over the French public, the British public, the American public, I think that is achievable,” Chikli said.
“And the ones actually doing that are the conservative parties, or conservative leaders such as Tommy Robinson.”
Chikli added that Israel shares with such figures not only opposition to “radical Islam”, but also “an understanding of the importance of the nation-state, of identity, and of heritage.”
The remarks make explicit a political strategy that Chikli has been pursuing for some time.
READ: Israel’s embrace of Tommy Robinson deepens rift with British Jewry
In October 2025, Chikli officially invited Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, to visit Israel, praising the former English Defence League leader as a “British patriot” and a “courageous leader on the front line against radical Islam”. Robinson subsequently travelled to Israel following the invitation.
The invitation provoked an extraordinary confrontation between Chikli and leading representatives of British Jewry. The Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council described Robinson as “a thug who represents the very worst of Britain” and accused Chikli of ignoring the views of the overwhelming majority of British Jews who reject the far-right activist.
Robinson has multiple criminal convictions and has long faced criticism over his anti-Muslim activism. British Jewish organisations have also raised concerns over his past promotion of far-right ideas with anti-Semitic roots.
The ideological convergence described openly by Chikli also bears directly on arguments explored in Joss Sheldon’s The Zionists Who Hate Jews.
The book examines a long and controversial history in which Zionist leaders have at times sought alliances with anti-Semitic and far-right political forces when their interests converged with the objectives of the Zionist movement. Sheldon argues that this pattern stretches from the movement’s earliest leaders to Israel’s contemporary relationships with nationalist movements in Europe and the US.
READ: “The Zionists Who Hate Jews”: a century of evidence against Zionism’s oldest defence
