Israel is not isolated Netanyahu tells WJC
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told a delegation of World Jewish Congress (WJC) leaders that despite the perception that Israel is isolated, there had been a dramatic expansion of relations with countries recently, including in the Arab world, something that would have been inconceivable just five years ago.
Benjamin Netanyahu, David de Rothschild, Ronald S. Lauder, Chella Safra (credit: Haim Zach/GPO)
“There is a lot of talk about Israel’s isolation. I beg to differ,” Netanyahu said. Countries across the Middle East were to starting to view Israel less as an enemy and more as an important ally in the fight against terror. On Monday, the WJC Executive members were received by Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin, who outlined three major challenges facing Israel and the Jewish Diaspora. The WJC delegation at both meetings was headed by WJC President Ronald S. Lauder, Chairman of the Governing Board David de Rothschild, and Treasurer Chella Safra.
Netanyahu called the core of the conflict in the Middle East a conflict between medievalism and modernity. The cause of the specific conflict with the Palestinians is not territories and not settlements, but the persistent refusal of the Palestinians to recognise a Jewish state in any boundary and the inculcation to hate, the prime minister said. “I am very hopeful for Israel’s future,” Netanyahu said, telling the WJC delegation: “You have always been there for us.”
