THE NORWEGIAN EMBASSY RESPONDS: Reader Terry Hinshaw got this email, and shared it with me:

The Royal Norwegian Embassy has taken due note of your comments to the incident in the Norwegian Parliament last week, when a young man was requested to leave his outer garment – displaying a small Israeli flag on the chest pocket – in the cloak room before being re-admitted to the Parliament restaurant. The staff acted of the basis of administrative procedures of the Parliament, which require that outer garments be checked in the cloak room.

It should be underlined that the incident was not politically motivated. Nor does the incident reflect any change in Norway’s position with regard to the situation in the Middle East.

The Norwegian government has repeatedly given its full support to the U.S. efforts to stop the violence and seek a negotiated solution to the conflict. We share the objective of an immediate cease-fire, an end to all violence, an Israeli retreat and a dialogue between Israel and the Palestine Authorities. In a statement issued on April 17, Foreign Minister Jan Petersen expresses his concern for the current situation, and calls on both parties to implement recent resolutions by the U.N. Security Council.

Israel has many friends in Norway. The young man visiting the the Parliament last week is only one of them. Their consititutional right to voice their opinion has not been and will not be restricted.

Yours sincerely,

Jon-Åge Øyslebø
Counselor for Press and Cultural Affairs
Royal Norwegian Embassy
Washington, D.C.

Hinshaw comments that “It sounds like an after-the-fact rationalization for what happened in their Parliament. . . .” Maybe so. But at least they realize now that — to coin a phrase — the whole world is watching.