From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, October 31, 2023
In appeal to Diaspora, Gantz says Israel fighting for college students afraid to wear Star of David
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
In addition to publishing a video statement reaching out to Israel’s Arab citizens, Minister Benny Gantz publishes a similar clip addressing Diaspora Jewry.
“My Jewish brothers and sisters, October 7, 2023, was a day of destruction forever burned into the hearts and minds of every Jew around the world,” Gantz begins, speaking in English.
“A day [that] proved yet again that we cannot ignore our enemies on our doorstep. That is the painful legacy of our past — a historical and moral obligation to defend the Jewish nation.”
“Like every Jewish generation, we find ourselves once again weeping for the murder of Jewish children. Entire families turned to dust at the hands of Hamas, an organization more despicable than ISIS.”
“But like every Jewish generation, we will outlive this evil. The one and only Jewish state will prevail.”
“As I speak, our sons and daughters endanger their lives to ensure our survival, to defend our homeland and our families.”
My Jewish brothers and sisters –
As our Jewish and Israeli communities around the world are targeted and antisemitism rears its ugly head once again, this is my message to you: pic.twitter.com/QjuoTevXbV— בני גנץ – Benny Gantz (@gantzbe) October 30, 2023
“They fight — we fight — for a future free of terror, a future free from Jewish fear. We owe it to the Jew in Auschwitz crying for help, we owe it to the university students scared to wear a Star of David or speak Hebrew.”
“We owe it to over 200 hostages sitting in darkness with nothing but hope keeping them warm. We owe it to the children of the nation of Israel who deserve one day to live beside their neighbors in security and peace.”
“As we fight back, we will not apologize for wanting security. We will not bow down to terror. We will not step away from what we know is right. We will continue dreaming of peace, but we swear to deliver on our promise. The eternal safe, powerful, one and only Jewish state is here to stay. The nation of Israel lives. Forever,” Gantz concludes.
