A Jerusalem Day message..from Jerusalem
Chairman of the Executive of The Jewish Agency for Israel Natan Sharansky sends a message for Jerusalem Day.
Chairman of the Executive of The Jewish Agency for Israel Natan Sharansky Photo : Lior Daskal for The Jewish Agency for Israel.
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat (second from right) visits the Western Wall in the Israeli capital’s Old City, Oct. 22, 2013. Credit: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90.
“Today we celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Jerusalem’s reunification.
That momentous occasion in 1967 deeply impacted Jews around the world, who went from anguished dread to soaring jubilation at Israel’s stunning victory in only six days. When the soldiers of the Israel Defence Forces broke through the gates of Jerusalem’s Old City, they also punched a hole in the Iron Curtain, inspiring us Soviet Jews to start our struggle for freedom.
This struggle, supported by Jews around the world, ultimately brought down the Iron Curtain and enabled a million Jews to come home to Israel. Sadly, there remain many around the world who deny our connection to this land and to our holiest city, including in international forums. It was therefore deeply gratifying to see the President of the United States make a point of visiting the Western Wall and emphasising the centrality of Jerusalem to the Jewish people throughout his time in Israel.
Peace will not come to this troubled region through the hateful denial of historical facts, but rather through the acceptance of the Jewish people’s ties to this land and the legitimacy of our sovereign presence here. I wish to congratulate Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government, as well as the American administration, on the successful conclusion of the president’s first visit to the Jewish state and to extend warm greetings to Jews around the world on the occasion of Jerusalem Day.”
