Sarah Palin thinks Israel should 'stop apologising'.
The former Alaska governor, currently in Israel on a two-day private tour, made the remark as she and husband Todd toured the Western Wall and its adjacent tunnels.
'Why are you apologising all the time,' Palin asked guides Israeli lawmaker, Danny Danon and Western Wall Rabbi, Shmuel Rabinowitz, after they told her Jews were not allowed to pray openly in the Temple Mount and about the riots following Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's decision to create an exit from the tunnels in the 90s.
The trip has raised speculation Palin is honing her foreign policy credentials ahead of a run for the U.S. presidency next year.
She arrived in Israel yesterday after a stop in India, wearing a large Star of David.
She went on to tell Danon that she had flags of Israel 'on my desk, in my home, all over the place'.
'She didn't go into diplomatic issues, but I can clearly say from the questions she asked in relation to our conflict here with the Muslims in these holy sites that she knows that we are right and that the Muslims are just claiming things for provocation and they're not right,' Danon told the Jerusalem Post.
Palin told them she wouldn't be able to visit Nazarath or Bethlehem during her brief stay, but promised to be back.
The U.S former vice presidential candidate was later seen heading to Bethlehem when her vehicle suddenly turned around at an Israeli checkpoint.
Photographers at the scene said no one got out of the car before it went back in the direction of Jerusalem.
It is not clear why the decision was made to turn back. Bethlehem is under Palestinian control and Israelis need permission to enter it.
The Israeli military authority that coordinates West Bank access for foreign dignitaries confirmed it had received no request from Palin's team re a visit to the holy city of Jesus's birth, according to The London Independent.
Palin has tried to keep a low profile during what is her first trip to Israel. She dodged waiting paparazzi who were staking out hotels and holy sites in hopes of getting a glimpse of the former governor.
She rarely travels abroad and has been criticised for her weak foreign policy record.
Famously Palin didn't even own a passport until 2006 and once said ‘you can actually see Russia from Alaska’ when she asked about her insights into Russian politics.
A visit to Israel, a key U.S. ally, has become almost a rite of passage for potential Republican candidates at a time of strained relations between the U.S. and Israeli governments.
Israel is a key American ally in a volatile region and a top concern for Jewish voters and pro-Israel Christian groups in the U.S.
Palin's two-day private visit follows similar stops by former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, all potential candidates for president in 2012.
Both Barack Obama and John McCain made stops in Israel ahead of the 2008 election. Mr Obama has not returned since he was elected however.
Netanyahu has had a rocky relationship with Mr Obama over Israel's settlement building in the West Bank and the lack of progress in peacemaking.
Danon said the Republican candidates' embrace of Israel offers an alternative to Mr Obama's combative approach.
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