Live UpdateFrom the Liveblog of Sunday, August 4, 2024

Herzog says hostage deal must be reached quickly; PM: Military pressure will bring captives back

4 August 2024, 8:02 pm 13 Edit

President Isaac Herzog emphasizes the need to reach a deal quickly to return hostages held in Gaza, saying an agreement “is central to our resilience and unity.”

Speaking at the State Memorial Ceremony for Revisionist Zionist leader Ze’ev Jabotinsky, Herzog says Israel is ready to protect itself against “an axis of evil,” referring to Iran’s Axis of Resistance, highlighting Israel’s advanced defense systems and regional allies.

“Another important point: during such challenging times, we must take responsibility for Israeli unity and solidarity. Our national resilience is being tested, and we all feel that internal tensions and polarization are growing, precisely when we can afford it least. I call on public leaders to calm the situation, exercise restraint, refrain from crossing red lines, and protect our social fabric and solidarity,” he says.

“We must not harm the IDF. Based on intelligence reports, I know that our enemies celebrate when they see division among us. This is a strategic gain for them,” he adds, in an apparent reference to right-wing mobs, among them Knesset lawmakers, that invaded two army bases last week over the arrest of soldiers by military police for allegedly abusing a Palestinian detainee.

“It is our highest duty to act urgently to bring the hostages home,” he continues. “Our brothers and sisters face daily life-threatening danger, and we must fulfill our obligation to bring them back — the living to their homes, and the fallen to a proper burial in Israel.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also speaks at the ceremony, asserting that “only increasing military pressure on the Hamas murderers will lead to the achievement of all the war’s goals — including the return of all our hostages home, both the living and the dead.”

“Iran and its lackeys seek to surround us with a stranglehold of terror. We are determined to stand against them on every front and in every arena — far and near. Anyone who harms us will pay a very heavy price,” Netanyahu says.

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