Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking in Jerusalem on Wednesday at Newsmax’s fourth annual Fourth of July celebration, declared that “most Americans” reject Hamas’ “lies,” recognize that Israel “stands for the same values as America” and support its push to continue fighting against the “barbarians at the gate” who seek to destroy his country.
“They recognize that we are fighting the barbarians at the gate,” Netanyahu said in his address at Wednesday’s event, which aired on Newsmax. “When I say barbarians, this is not hyperbole. It’s not only the goal of destroying Israel, it’s even the method that they use to murder and mutilate the heathen, as they call them.”
The prime minister, in a speech that included some comments in Hebrew, further strongly denied claims that have been made that his country is staging a “starvation policy” against the people of Gaza, as well as reports that claim that genocide is being waged.
“The genocidal element is Hamas,” Netanyahu said. “The genocidal element is the Iranian axis that openly calls for the annihilation and extermination of Israel, and many Jews in America, and for the death of America itself.”
Praising President Donald Trump for “boldly” sending bombers to aid Israel against Iran, “our common enemy,” Netanyahu went on to claim that the only “deliberate starvation policy” in Gaza is the “starving of our hostages.”
He pointed to images of “emaciated hostages” alongside their “corpulent” captors, and said the fight to “puncture the lies and bring out the truth” is the “eighth front” against Hamas.
From the first days of the conflict, which started with the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the prime minister said, the Israeli military has sought to separate civilians from combatants both on the battlefield and in humanitarian efforts.
“This has never happened before in a war, an army fighting terrorists in an urban environment calling on civilians in enemy territory to leave,” he said, adding that Hamas gunmen shot at civilians who tried to flee.
“And then Israel is blamed for genocide. That’s ridiculous,” Netanyahu.
He also told the audience at the Newsmax event that Israel has delivered nearly 2 million tons of food and medical aid to Gaza.
Netanyahu stressed that if Israel aimed to starve the Palestinians, “nearly two years after the beginning of the war, everybody in Gaza would be dead, but they’re not, because that’s not our policy.”
Instead, he said, Hamas is looting aid, killing aid workers and causing shortages.
“Hamas caused the hunger problem,” said the prime minister. “Israel is blamed again, falsely.”
Israel has also responded with a “humanitarian surge,” he insisted, which involves offering safe routes and increasing distribution points, while inviting other nations to join in.
“Hundreds of trucks go in daily,” he said. “The hunger problem has basically been solved. What has not been solved is the campaign of lies.”
The international media is also leading to the false information that is being released, he said, pointing out that The New York Times had used misleading images to allege starvation, citing three children portrayed as famine victims who were suffering from genetic diseases.
“Two of the three were actually taken care of by Israel,” he said, noting one child’s treatment in an Italian hospital.
“And that’s why I salute Newsmax and others who stand together, stand up for the truth, are not cowed, can speak their mind, can show the facts, can stand up for our common humanity and for our common future,” said the prime minister.
Drawing on history, Netanyahu likened current accusations to anti-Semitic libels of the Middle Ages, including false claims Jews poisoned wells or used Christian blood in rituals, which fueled centuries of persecution culminating in the Holocaust.
“Then we had no defense. Now we have a country, an army, and we fight back against our tormentors,” he said.
Netanyahu also condemned those on U.S. campuses supporting Hamas slogans like “from the river to the sea,” warning that many have no idea “the river” and “the sea” encompass all of Israel, and concluded by stressing the importance of fighting for freedom.
“If you’re not ready to fight for freedom, you will lose it. If you do not fight for your civilization, you will lose it,” he said. “We are prepared to fight, and I know America is prepared to stand with us. I salute you for doing the same.”
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