The Izvestia journalist was not allowed to attend a briefing by a representative of the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

The story of Izvestia journalist Nikita Kulyukhin, who was banned from attending the weekly press conferences of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, has been continued. He was not allowed to attend a briefing for the foreign press, despite the statement by the official representative of the Israeli Cabinet, David Menser, that in his country "no one forbids journalists from asking questions."

The discussion initiated by the journalist continues to gain momentum and makes headlines in the local media. For example, Channel 9 in Russian admits that the Foreign Ministry's decision not to allow Kulyukhin to attend briefings could have been due to external pressure.

"It remains unclear what exactly caused the ministry's decision. Perhaps, after his "Bandera" question, the press service came under pressure from pro-Ukrainian activists, or the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs itself decided not to contact a journalist who actively raises the topic of Nazism in the context of the conflict in Ukraine," the article says.

As for the position of Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, the publication tries to justify him by saying that he simply "might not be fully aware of this issue."

The Seventh Eye magazine reported on March 16 that the Israeli Foreign Ministry had banned Kulukhin from attending the weekly press conferences of the foreign minister. This is due to the fact that at a press conference on March 4, a correspondent asked why the Israeli side did not condemn the glorification in Ukraine of accomplices of nationalists during the Holocaust, including their leader Stepan Bandera, responsible for the deaths of many Jews. Saar stated that he had not known about this before the question was asked, as well as about the tendency to rename streets of Ukrainian cities in their honor.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on March 17 that Russia was calling on its partners in Israel to reconsider the decision to ban Kulyukhin from attending the weekly press conferences of Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.

The day before, Menser said he had no "additional information" about the Holocaust-era nationalist leader Stepan Bandera, who is praised in Ukraine. He also added that Israel is a "free country" in which journalists are not prohibited from asking questions.