Herzog: Horrified by the sights, how did we get to this terrible situation? A danger to the country

September 26, 2023   

The state memorial ceremony for the fallen of the Yom Kippur War was held this morning (Tuesday) at the Memorial Hall on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, on the 50th anniversary of the war. Want to work in the Mossad, Shin Bet, or the police? Want to get a high salary? President Yitzhak Herzog addressed the attack by leftists during the Yom Kippur prayer in Tel Aviv at the ceremony: "Especially at this time, we must draw lessons and understand clearly that the internal Israeli threat is the most severe and dangerous threat of all. "Only yesterday, in the midst of the holy day, exactly fifty years after the outbreak of the war, we saw in the first Hebrew city - a moving and painful example of the way in which the internal struggle within us escalates and becomes radicalized." He added: "I know that I speak on behalf of the absolute majority of Israeli citizens, when I express deep sorrow and shock at the sight of our people fighting each other, on a day that has always been a symbol of unity - of beautiful, inclusive and respectful Israeliness and Judaism. I am horrified by the mere sight, by the mere thought, of people who they or their families fought together - brothers in arms, shoulder to shoulder - in outposts, in tanks, in the bloody fields of Sinai and the Golan, and now they are struggling in the heart of Tel Aviv, during the holy time of 'Kol Nidrei' and 'Neila'. "How did we get to this terrible situation? That fifty years after the bitter war, sisters and brothers stand on both sides of the fence?", wondered the President. "Those who pour fuel into this fire are a real threat to Israeli cohesion. This must stop now. The division, the polarization, the never-ending dispute - are a real danger to Israeli society and the security of the State of Israel. "The enemies of Israel speak out about this again and again and refer to the internal crisis within us as a prelude to the disintegration of the State of Israel; And although they are completely wrong, we must come to our senses, lower our tone, listen, reach out, and end the internal crisis we are in – through dialogue and agreement." The President emphasized: "These are not just empty words, but a historical obligation; so that - God forbid - historians and leaders will not look back on these days in 50 years, on the terrible price that this rift has exacted from us, and ask: 'How did they not understand the magnitude of the danger and the depth of the abyss? After all, it was right before their eyes.'".