ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is coming under pressure to reverse his decision to appoint May Golan as consul general of Israel in New York, it was reported on Sunday.

Ms Golan has come under fire for views that critics have labelled as racist, Islamophobic and anti-feminist.

The Times of Israel reported that Ms Golan’s nomination has sparked concerns from Jewish and US leaders, as well as her support for ultra-right-wing groups.

The newspaper reported that one of the main Jewish associations in New York will not welcome Ms Golan because of her supremacist positions.

Jill Jacobs, executive director of the rabbinical human rights group T’ruah, said that “this appointment would be another affront to the Netanyahu government and an offence to people, both Jewish and non-Jewish.”

Ms Jacobs said that the support Ms Golan has given to violent anti-Arab groups and what she describes as the former lawmaker’s racist and Islampohobic views means that she would not be welcome among New York Jews.

During her political career, Ms Golan campaigned for the expulsion of African asylum-seekers.

At a New York rally held in 2012, Ms Golan said: “We are racist because we want to preserve our lives and our sanity. I am proud to be a racist. If I am racist to preserve my life, then I am proud.”

During a 2014 interview with Haaretz, the Hebrew daily newspaper, Ms Golan alleged that the migrants posed a health risk. 

US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel criticised those statements, but did not go as far as to oppose her appointment.

The position of consul general of New York has been vacant since last month.

This followed the resignation of Asaf Zamir, who left the post in protest over the controversial judicial overhaul being proposed by Mr Netanyahu’s ultra-right-wing government.