At opening of Knesset session, Herzog says Israel must remain united to defy its enemies

By Sam Sokol 28 October 2024, 5:27 pm

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Sam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"

President Isaac Herzog at a memorial ceremony for people who were murdered during the October 7 massacre, at the Knesset in Jerusalem, October 28, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Addressing the opening of the Knesset winter legislative session, President Isaac Herzog argues that Israel’s enemies “have worked hard to inflame internal conflict” and that Iran and its proxies “place at the heart of their campaign against Israel the destruction of Israeli trust.”

Addressing lawmakers in the Knesset plenum, Herzog argues that “understand our enemy’s ultimate strategy [is] to challenge the enduring spirit of Israel and the Jewish people and to destroy the State of Israel and Israeli society through external and internal attacks” and “erode Israelis’ trust in themselves and in their state.”

“When that trust erodes, when the foundations are shaken, the nation is at risk,” he says, arguing that it is up to members of the Knesset “to restore and rebuild that trust” and that such plans should serve as “a wake-up call to Israeli leadership and all of society.”

“Restoring trust cannot happen if the tone and hostility here are not moderated. Reckless, inflammatory, hateful statements — whether in public spaces or within these walls — must cease,” Herzog insists.

As part of this effort to rebuild trust, the president calls on lawmakers to work to bring the hostages home, stating that Israel has a “unique window of opportunity” to do so and “must make every effort and use every tool to bring everyone back as swiftly as possible.”

“Failure to bring them home will leave us with an open wound that will scar our society and nation for generations,” he says.

Herzog also calls “to expand the circle of shared responsibility, an immense privilege — to defend our shared home” and “initiate a deep, wide-ranging investigation into the October 7 failure and disaster, reliably, rigorously, and independently, to derive lessons, take responsibility, and build trust between citizens and the state.”

“I repeat my call for an inquiry through a national investigative commission with a professional and diverse composition that commands broad public trust,” he says.

“Fourthly, a crucial step is the return of Israelis who were displaced from their homes — in security and peace, he says, urging Israeli leaders “to sit down, talk, and make every effort to avoid unilateral moves.”