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 Trump, the Republican front-runner for the 2016 White House race,
on Thursday teased Jewish party donors in Washington.
"You’re not going to support me even though you know I'm the best
thing that could ever happen to Israel," Trump told the Republican
Jewish Coalition. "You’re not going to support me because I don't
want your money."
The quip, and Trump's description of himself as "a negotiator like
you folks", were deemed "offensive stereotypes" by the Times of
Israel website.
A U.S. affairs analyst for Israel's Haaretz newspaper described the
billionaire property developer's comments as "blatant Jewish
stereotyping".
 Israeli government spokesmen did not respond to Trump's remarks. But
two cabinet members from Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party sounded
unfazed on Friday.
"I think that at the end of the day Donald Trump is known as a
candidate whose almost every statement is a provocative statement.
So it might be said that the Jews got off cheap compared to his
other statements," Immigration Minister Zev Elkin told Israel Radio.
"I don't think anyone should draw lessons from this or that
statement," Elkin said, adding Israel should stay out of U.S.
politics while American Jews "weigh up the various candidates
according to what they represent and make a decision".
That view was echoed by Israeli Tourism Minister Yariv Levin, who
was interviewed separately about Trump's remarks.
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"If this is what he thinks, let him think so. I don't think it is
our business," Levin told Tel Aviv radio station 102 FM.
"There can be disagreements both with (U.S. President Barack) Obama
and with Trump and with others, and I can even promise that we will
have a great deal of cooperation with whichever president is
elected."
In his speech, Trump played up his pro-Israel credentials and Jewish
relatives. He drew occasional applause for condemning Obama and
Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton.
But when he wavered in answering a question about whether he would
consider Jerusalem the undivided capital of Israel, boos broke out
in the crowd. Palestinians want East Jerusalem, captured by Israel
in a 1967 war, for their future state.
(Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Andrew Roche)
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