Belgium’s only Jewish member of parliament, Michael Freilich, has been thrust into the center of a growing diplomatic and domestic controversy following a public dispute over bris milah.

The controversy erupted Monday after a public exchange between U.S. Ambassador to Belgium Bill White and Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prévot on social media.

In a post on X, White urged Belgian authorities to halt an investigation into mohelim, accusing the country of failing to provide legal protections for religious practice.

“You must make a legal provision to allow Jewish religious mohels to perform their duties here in Belgium,” White wrote, calling the procedure legal in “all civilized countries.”

Prévot responded by rejecting any claim of antisemitism as “false, offensive, and unacceptable,” and emphasized that Belgian law allows ritual circumcision only when conducted by qualified physicians under strict medical standards.

The exchange followed raids carried out nearly a year ago by Belgian authorities in Antwerp’s Jewish Quarter as part of an investigation into alleged illegal circumcision practices. The probe stemmed from a complaint by a local rabbi against six mohelim who practiced metzitzah b’peh.

On the same day as the diplomatic spat, Freilich told Belgian newspaper HLN that he had raised concerns about the issue during a visit to Washington in May 2025, seeking guidance on possible legislation.

“I asked them to assist us in finding the correct legislation,” Freilich said, noting that circumcision is widely accepted in the United States.

He later appealed to European Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi to pressure Belgium’s health ministry to resolve the matter.

Freilich’s outreach quickly drew criticism from political leaders across party lines. CD&V chairman Sammy Mahdi described the move as “worrying” and “totally inappropriate,” arguing that Belgian officials should not seek foreign influence in domestic legal cases.

“Those who serve Belgian interests are not going to ask Trump’s clique to influence our legislation,” Mahdi wrote on Instagram.

Belgium’s Green Party went further, calling for an ethical investigation into Freilich’s actions. Greens deputy Meyrem Almaci accused him of prioritizing foreign interests.

“Freilich does not behave like a representative of the Belgian people,” Almaci said.

Jewish organizations have warned that parts of the backlash echo longstanding antisemitic tropes. The Jewish Information and Documentation Center (JID) said Freilich has been subjected to “unjustified and dangerous attempts” to undermine his credibility, including rumors that he pressured Washington to interfere in Belgian policy.

Such allegations, critics say, mirror historic claims of divided loyalty often directed at Jewish officials.

Freilich rejected those claims in an interview with Radio Judaica.

“Belgium, a beautiful country, could not be considered antisemitic,” he said. “Accusing a Jewish official of disloyalty to his country is textbook antisemitism.”

U.S.-based ambassador-at-large Yehuda Kaploun likened the campaign against him to a “modern-day Dreyfus Affair,” referring to the 19th-century French case widely seen as a symbol of institutional antisemitism.

JID echoed that view, stressing that while policy disagreements are legitimate, personal attacks are not.

“Criticism of positions is legitimate,” the organization said. “Spreading insinuations and repeating old antisemitic tropes is not.”

“Michael Freilich is a democratically elected Belgian MP, and we reject any attempt at character assassination or public manhunt.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)