IDF chief at Auschwitz vows to protect Jewish people

IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, speaking at the March of the Living at the Auschwitz death camp, vows that the Israeli army will protect the Jewish people from any future threats.

“We, officers and commanders of the IDF, will march steadfastly towards life, in the name of the People of Israel,” Eisenkot says.

He notes that even 69 years after the establishment of the Jewish state, the country still faces threats.

“Facing them, we remain ever vigilant and our reach extends far. We prepare for every eventuality, adapt to the emerging threats and are confident in the knowledge that, in the moment of truth, we will fight relentlessly and fulfill the IDF’s purpose: to defend the State of Israel, ensure its existence and, if need be, win decisively in war,” he says.

“From the Diaspora, the Jewish people look upon the land of Israel and know that there lies an army ready to ensure the safety of its people,” he says, adding that “we will continue to ensure that no power can call into question our existence as a land or a people.”

— Judah Ari Gross