Bodyguards subdued a Palestinian man today as he approached Middle East envoy Tony Blair, shouting at him and calling him a “terrorist”.
The former British prime minister was confronted while visiting an ancient mosque during an official trip to the West Bank city of Hebron.
The protester, carrying a bag, was backed into a corner by guards who tried to shut him up. "He is not welcome in the land of Palestine," the struggling man shouted.
Mr Blair (56), is envoy for the "Quartet" of powers on the Middle East, comprising the European Union, the United States, Russia and the United Nations.
He gave a tight-lipped smile and a pacifying wave in the general direction of the shouting man, and afterwards played down the incident as not typical of local feelings.
Most Palestinians and Israelis want the conflict "resolved in a peaceful way", he said. They understand "it's not going to be resolved unless we find a way of creating two states, a state of Israel and a state of Palestine side by side in peace."
"Frankly it's not protests that will do that. It's patient negotiation," Mr Blair told reporters.
His Hebron hosts were upset by the security breach. Mr Blair is despised by many Arabs for supporting the 2003 invasion of Iraq, for declining to speak out against Israel's 2006 war against Hezbollah and for what they perceive as his bias in favour of Israel when he was Britain's prime minister.
"You know, he made his protest and that's fair enough," Mr Blair told reporters once the man was removed from the mosque. "I think it's important for you guys as well to not always mistake the protest for the general view of the whole population," he said.
Reuters