US diplomat Thomas Barrack apologized last night for using the word 'animal' in reference to a group of reporters he was trying to silence during a news conference in Lebanon earlier this week, the Associated Press reported.
Barrack, who is the US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria and is also on a temporary mission in Lebanon, said he did not intend to use the word 'in a derogatory sense', but still acknowledged his comments were 'inappropriate'.
Barrack visited Beirut with a delegation of US officials on Tuesday to discuss efforts by the Lebanese government to disarm the Hezbollah militant group and implement the ceasefire agreement that ended another war between Israel and Hezbollah in November.
At the beginning of the press conference at the presidential palace, journalists loudly called on Barak to take the podium after he began speaking from another place in the hall. After taking the podium, Barak told journalists to "behave in a civilized manner, be polite and tolerant." He threatened to end the press conference early if they did not.
"The moment this starts to become chaotic, like an animal, we leave," Barak said.
The comment sparked a backlash, with the Lebanese Journalists' Union demanding an apology and calling for a boycott of Barak's visits if he did not be served. The presidential palace also issued a statement expressing regret over the comments made by “one of our guests“ and thanking the journalists for “their hard work“.
In an interview, excerpts of which were published last night, Barak said: “Animal was a word I didn't use in a derogatory sense, I was just saying “can we calm down, can we show some tolerance and kindness, let's be civilized“. But it was inappropriate to do that when the media was just doing their job“.
“I should have been more generous with my time and more tolerant“, he added.