The situation outraged the international press: a minister, with a disability, was refused access to COP26, the Glasgow 2021 conference on climate change. This is Karine Elharrar, Israeli Minister of Energy. She was unable to attend the meetings on November 1, 2021, because the buses providing shuttles to the site were not equipped to accommodate wheelchairs, AFP said. However, the minister will be able to meet British Prime Minister Boris Johnson with his Israeli counterpart on Tuesday, according to Israeli sources.
Karine Elharrar traveled to Scotland with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to attend the international climate conference. But security officials did not allow the minister’s adapted vehicle to access the site, despite efforts. “for two hourss “from the Israeli prime minister’s office to negotiate access, the minister’s spokesperson told AFP. The politician suffers from muscular dystrophy and uses a wheelchair to get around.
“It is sad to see that the UN, which promotes equal access for people with disabilities, is unable, in 2021, to ensure accessibility to this event“, wrote the Minister on Twitter.”I hope that the necessary lessons will be learned and that I could (Tuesday) promote green energy“, she added.
A source within Naftali Bennett’s delegation said he raised the issue with Boris Johnson ahead of their scheduled meeting on Tuesday. The two officials agreed that Ms. Elharrar “would access the site with Mr. Bennett and participate in the meeting with Mr. Johnson“, according to this source. And the British ambassador to Israel has apologized to the minister.
Since June 13, 2021, Karine Elharrar, 44, has served as Israeli Minister of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water. This member of the Yesh Atif party was elected to the Knesset, the parliament of the State of Israel, in 2015 and then in 2019.