In prerecorded message for Independence Day event, Netanyahu hails Israel’s warriors; TV broadcasts then switch from ceremony to updates on the fires

On a surreal, fraught evening, in which Israel is starting to mark its 77th Independence Day while firefighters battle some of the worst wildfires in its history, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a prerecorded Independence Day message, as part of a prerecorded rehearsal for the intended live Independence Day opening ceremony, which is currently being screened in place of the live event, which was cancelled because of the day’s high winds even before the fires began to rage.

Netanyahu hails the wonders of Israel, and the warriors who have fallen in Israel’s defense. He recalls that a year ago, there were those who doubted Israel’s power, but says, “This year, nobody doubts it… because Israel has changed the face of the Middle East.”

He says Israel is determined to achieve “complete victory” over all of its enemies, and to bring home all the remaining hostages held in Gaza.

Netanyahu notes that the people of Israel have always been able to recover from crises and thrive again. Today, in contrast to the generations before independence, Israel is a country with a potent army and “brave warriors respected worldwide,” he adds. “This is a generation of lions.”

And for all the internal divisions, he declares, “we all stand together… We will continue to fight and ensure our freedom. We will continue to struggle and to defend our homeland… We will continue to build the land, because we have only one home,” he says.

After Netanyahu’s brief speech, and at other stages of the pre-recorded ceremony, Channels 12 and 13 interrupt their broadcasts of the event and switch to real-time updates on the state of the wildfires, the evacuation of affected areas, and the efforts to gain control of the blazes.