(Communicated by the Prime Minister’s Media Adviser)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks earlier this afternoon Monday February 6th at a meeting of the Likud Knesset faction:

“I would like to say a few words about what was signed in Doha. Hamas is a terrorist organization that strives to destroy Israel, and which is supported by Iran. I have said many times in the past that the Palestinian Authority must choose between an alliance with Hamas and peace with Israel. Hamas and peace do not go together.

Over the past few weeks, Israel and elements in the international community have made great efforts to advance the peace process. If Abu Mazen implements what has been signed in Doha, he will have chosen to abandon the way of peace and to join with Hamas, without Hamas having accepted the minimal conditions of the international community: Not only does Hamas not recognize Israel and the [previously signed] agreements, it has not  abandoned terrorism. It is continuing with terrorism and to arm itself in order to perpetrate even deadlier terrorism.

I say to Abu Mazen: You cannot hold the stick by both ends. It is either peace with Hamas or peace with Israel; you cannot have it both ways.”

1 person likes this post.

Unlike

Citizens of Israel, today we are all united in joy and in pain.

Two-and-a-half years ago, I returned to the Prime Minister’s Office.  One of the principal and most complicated missions that I found on my desk, and which I set my heart to, was to bring our abducted soldier Gilad Shalit back home, alive and well.  Today, that mission has been completed.

It entailed a very difficult decision.  I saw the need to return home someone whom the State of Israel had sent to the battlefield.  As an IDF soldier and commander, I went out on dangerous missions many times.  But I always knew that if I or one of my comrades fell captive, the Government of Israel would do its utmost to return us home, and as Prime Minister, I have now carried this out.  As a leader who daily sends out soldiers to defend Israeli citizens, I believe that mutual responsibility is no mere slogan – it is a cornerstone of our existence here.

But I also see an additional need, that of minimizing the danger to the security of Israel’s citizens.  To this end, I enunciated two clear demands.  First, that senior Hamas leaders, including arch-murderers, remain in prison.  Second, that the overwhelming majority of those designated for release either be expelled or remain outside Judea and Samaria, in order to impede their ability to attack our citizens.

For years, Hamas strongly opposed these demands.  But several months ago, we received clear signs that it was prepared to back down from this opposition.  Tough negotiations were carried out, night and day, in Cairo, with the mediation of the Egyptian government.  We stood our ground, and when our main demands were met – I had to make a decision.

I know very well that the pain of the families of the victims of terrorism is too heavy to bear.  It is difficult to see the miscreants who murdered their loved ones being released before serving out their full sentences.  But I also knew that in the current diplomatic circumstances, this was the best agreement we could achieve, and there was no guarantee that the conditions which enabled it to be achieved would hold in the future.  It could be that Gilad would disappear; to my regret, such things have already happened.

I thought of Gilad and the five years that he spent rotting away in a Hamas cell.  I did not want his fate to be that of Ron Arad.  Ron fell captive exactly 25 years ago and has yet to return.  I remembered the noble Batya Arad.  I remembered her concern for her son Ron, right up until her passing.  At such moments, a leader finds himself alone and must make a decision.  I considered – and I decided.  Government ministers supported me by a large majority.

And today, now Gilad has returned home, to his family, his people and his country.  This is a very moving moment.  A short time ago, I embraced him as he came off the helicopter and escorted him to his parents, Aviva and Noam, and I said, ‘I have brought your son back home.’  But this is also a hard day; even if the price had been smaller, it would still have been heavy.

I would like to make it clear: We will continue to fight terrorism.  Any released terrorist who returns to terrorism – his blood is upon his head.  The State of Israel is different from its enemies: Here, we do not celebrate the release of murderers.  Here, we do not applaud those who took life.  On the contrary, we believe in the sanctity of life.  We sanctify life.  This is the ancient tradition of the Jewish People.

Citizens of Israel, in recent days, we have all seen national unity such as we have not seen in a long time.  Unity is the source of Israel’s strength, now and in the future.  Today, we all rejoice in Gilad Shalit’s return home to our free country, the State of Israel.  Tomorrow evening, we will celebrate Simchat Torah.  This coming Sabbath, we will read in synagogues, as the weekly portion from the prophets, the words of the prophet Isaiah (42:7): ‘To bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house.’  Today, I can say, on behalf of all Israelis, in the spirit of the eternal values of the Jewish People: ‘Your children shall return to their own border [Jeremiah 31:17].’  Am Yisrael Chai! [The People of Israel live!].

18 people like this post.

Unlike

(Communicated by the Office of the President)
President Shimon Peres strongly condemned the mosque attack in Tuba-Zangariyye earlier today.  In an event at Beit HaNassi recognizing the achievements of young scientists, the President said: “At the start of my remarks I wanted to express my profound shock from the horrible attack on the Mosque in Tuba-Zangariyye which took place today.

It is unconscionable that a Jew would harm something that is holy to another religion. This act is not-Jewish, illegal, immoral, and brings upon us heavy shame. I strongly condemn this horrible act in every language. This is not only a difficult day for the residents of Tuba-Zangariyye, it is a difficult day for all Israeli society. As the President of Israel, during these days of introspection between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, I call upon all to denounce these terrible acts.  These acts, destroy relations between us and our neighbors, and between the various religions in Israel.

We will not allow extremists and criminals to undercut the need to live together equally in equality and mutual respect. Arabs and Jews as one. I am sure that the Israeli police and security forces will apprehend these criminals and bring them to justice.

We must all stand behind them in an effort to preserve human dignity and respect for the law.”

* * *

(Communicated by the Prime Minister’s Media Adviser)
Earlier today, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this morning instructed ISA Director Yoram Cohen to quickly find those responsible for the arson at the mosque in the lower Galilee town of Tuba-Zangariyye.

Prime Minister Netanyahu, who was outraged by the images, said that this crime contravenes the values of the State of Israel, in which freedom of religion and freedom of worship are supreme values. “The images are shocking and have no place in the State of Israel,” the Prime Minister said.

Like

Unlike

Ahmadinejad Speech – Israel Response

Iran’s president once again, as in his previous appearances in New York and elsewhere, brought a message of hostility towards the family of nations as well as threats to global peace and security.

This should come as no surprise. Less than two weeks ago Ahmadinejad – so cordially hosted today by the UN  – reiterated his hollow assertion that the terror attack of 9/11 was a western plot, a decade after more than 3,000 innocent people lost their lives. He has reiterated this infamy today, facing the Nations.

Iran’s disdain for the international community is clear, and is exemplified by its continued serial disregard for six Security Resolutions calling on it to cease its nuclear and missile programs – as well as its arms transfers to terrorists.  For the past 10 years Tehran has defied the insistence of the International Atomic Energy Agency to come clean about its military nuclear program. Its meddling in the internal affairs of countries near and far flies in the face of respect for territorial sovereignty. A chronic violator of human rights, its cynical attempt to be elected to bodies established to fight human rights violations of all kinds is by now well known. For these reasons alone the international community should not have dignified the Iranian president with this platform to speak.

Tehran’s hostility for the Jewish state and people is also plain for all to see. Iranian leaders repeatedly call for Israel’s destruction, deny the Holocaust, and openly support terrorist organizations in word and deed – as demonstrated by its involvement in the 1994 bombing in Buenos Aires of the AMIA Jewish community center, a tragedy which still cries out for justice to be done.

7 people like this post.

Unlike

First published in The Forward

On a hilltop at the entrance to Jerusalem, overlooking a timeless view, stands the Middle East’s only memorial to the victims of 9/11. Forged in bronze and set in Jerusalem stone are the names of the 2,974 victims of the terrorist attack.

A 30-foot sculpture of an American flag transforming into flames evokes the twin towers. Side by side, the Stars and Stripes and the Shield of David flutter. The monument, built with American contributions to the Jewish National Fund and incorporating granite segments of the World Trade Center, stands as a testament to the shared pain — and common hope — of the United States and Israel.

As an Israeli who grew up in the United States, I feel that connection deeply. The twin towers dominated the skyline of my suburban hometown. They were a fixture of our lives, beacons of a resplendent future. My memory of that vision remained luminous throughout the grim summer of 2001, when suicide bombers targeted buses and restaurants in my Jerusalem neighborhood. Our son, Yoav, about to enter the Israel Defense Forces, refused to give up his normal life as a teenager and to stop going out to clubs. Which left his father sleepless.

“That’s it,” I finally told him. “Until your induction, you’re staying with your cousins in New York.”

On September 8, Yoav met his friends on the top the north tower. Dazzled by the vista, they agreed to rendezvous there again on the morning of the 11th. Yoav was still sleeping, fortunately, when his cousin awakened him with the news. From the roof of her apartment, he watched as both towers collapsed. My wife and I frantically tried to phone him, but the international lines were down. Hours passed before we finally reached him, weeping from the horror he had witnessed.

America’s agony was intensely felt by Israelis. Though we had long known the trauma wrought by terror and had grappled with its grief, the 9/11 attacks were unique in their scope and devastation. We watched, helpless, as the survivors staggered from the smoke and as families searched desperately for their loved ones. Yet we were also awed by the sheer heroism of the first responders, especially those who risked and even gave their lives to save others.

Volunteers poured into the streets of Lower Manhattan, offering food, shelter and emotional support in a display of community that inspired every Israeli. This, for us, was not only America at its most vulnerable, but also America at its most resilient and humane.

Yoav soon returned from New York and joined an elite IDF unit. Three years to the day after he visited the north tower, he was wounded while apprehending a Hamas commander responsible for the deaths of dozens of Israelis. And yet, despite encounters with terror on both sides of the ocean, Yoav remained optimistic. While aware of the need to defend his country from mounting threats, he still believes that peace is possible, and he yearns to embrace it. He is not alone. Today,10 years after 9/11, Americans and Israelis refuse to allow terror to diminish their determination to defend themselves or extinguish their desire for peace.

Together we are fighting back, pooling our technology and intelligence and medical know-how. For that reason, Israelis applauded the intrepid operation against Osama bin Laden — Hamas denounced it — and the successful campaign to eliminate Al Qaeda’s leadership. And together we are striving to create a more stable Middle East. Accordingly, Israel welcomes President Obama’s efforts to restart our direct talks with the Palestinians. We share his vision of a Palestinian state living alongside our Jewish state in mutual recognition, security and peace.

Throughout, we will not forget. We will remember the victims’ pain and their families’ irretrievable losses. On the anniversary of the horrendous attack, Israelis will stand with the people of America and lower our heads in silence. A great many will gather at the monument outside Jerusalem, and others at the ground zero memorial, “Reflecting Absence.” Fittingly, this solemn masterpiece was designed by Israeli architect Michael Arad, a veteran of an IDF commando squad and son of a former Israeli ambassador to the United States. Two countries, two memorials, inextricably linked by the same sorrows, strengths and hopes.

Michael Oren is Israel’s ambassador to the United States.

2 people like this post.

Unlike

First appeared in The Jerusalem Post

By Uri Resnick

Against the backdrop of a possible Palestinian bid for independence at the United Nations this September and thus far unsuccessful deliberations within the Quartet regarding terms of reference for restarting peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, the issue of defensible borders merits renewed attention.

Former foreign minister Yigal Allon was one of the clearest and most authoritative exponents of the case for Israel’s need for defensible borders. In an October 1976 article in Foreign Affairs, Allon noted that whereas Israel’s rivals seek to “isolate, strangle and erase Israel from the world’s map,” Israel’s strategic aims have been focused on its “imperative to survive.”

Thus, even if peace agreements are reached, border and security arrangements must ensure Israel’s ability to defend itself in the event that such agreements are breached. As the recent upheavals in the Middle East have clearly demonstrated, this guiding principle has not lost its salience. continue reading…

4 people like this post.

Unlike

Statement by Ambassador Susan E. Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, on Her Meeting with Noam Shalit

2 people like this post.

Unlike

Early Monday morning, a 21 year old Palestinian man from Nablus launched a terrorist attack at one of Tel Aviv’s most popular nightclubs. According to local police, the suspect hijacked a taxi, drove into the venue’s security, and proceeded to go on a stabbing spree, injuring 8 Israelis.

During yesterday’s daily press briefing, the U.S. State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland issued the following statement:

“The United States condemns in strongest terms yesterday’s brutal attack on innocent civilians in Tel Aviv. We extend our deepest sympathies to all those harmed in this tragedy. Attacks against innocent civilians in Israel or anywhere else are never justified. We again remind all parties that violence will not advance but will impede the hope for peace between Israelis and Palestinians.”

Like

Unlike

Since Thursday’s terrorist attack which left 8 Israelis dead and scores more wounded, Israel has responded swiftly to hold those responsible to justice. Even while Israel continues to be pounded by over 100 rockets launched from Gaza, the Israeli government approved the transfer of humanitarian goods and aid to enter Gaza.

The Erez Crossing, despite being hit by 2 rockets,  remained open to allow 100 Palestinians living in Gaza to enter Israel to receive medical treatment. At the Kerem Shalom crossing, 80 truckloads entered Gaza over the weekend, totaling 2,554 tons of goods, and 46 tons of cooking gas.

Here’s the breakdown:

• 13 truckloads of Fruits and Vegetables.
• 5 truckloads of Meat and Fish.
• 3 truckloads of Dairy Products
• 23 truckloads of Mixed Grain for animals feed.
• 9 truckloads of mixed food.
• UNRWA transferred 21 truckloads of construction materials and 6 truckloads of flour.

2 people like this post.

Unlike