Malaysia's ambassador to the United States was summoned by the U.S. State Department to explain Kuala Lumpur's position on Israel, state ​media reported, citing the country's foreign minister.

Axar.az reports that Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan ‌said Ambassador Muhammad Shahrul Ikram Yaakob told the State Department that Malaysia's longstanding policy of not recognising Israel was not new.

"It has always been Malaysia's ​policy. Our immigration policy does not recognise the State of ​Israel or the Zionist regime. This has long been our ⁠position."

"There was an individual with dual citizenship, the U.S. and Israel, who entered ​Malaysia using his U.S. passport. However, subsequent checks revealed that he also held ​Israeli citizenship, and we asked him to leave," Bernama cited Mohamad as saying late on Thursday.

The row was triggered after Network ​School, the "digital nomad" community founded in Malaysia by U.S. investor Balaji ​Srinivasan, came under scrutiny after social media users alleged that it included participants from Israel.

Malaysia ‌does ⁠not have diplomatic ties with Israel and is known to be a staunch supporter of the Palestinian cause.