In the shadow of the fighting in the south against Hamas' murderous terror attack, President of the State Isaac Herzog issued a special message to the international community tonight.
The President began describing the attack: "As the President of the State of Israel, I am speaking to you now from our capital, Jerusalem, in the dark shadow of the war, while my nation continues to be under a wild and inhumane attack by a cruel enemy."
Herzog continued and referred to scenes reminiscent of the Holocaust: "To the best of my memory, since the Holocaust, so many Jews have not been murdered in a single day. Since the Holocaust, we have not witnessed scenes of Jewish women and children, grandparents and grandmothers - even Holocaust survivors - being pushed onto trucks and taken captive."
"Hamas duplicated the crimes of ISIS"
At this point, the president drew a comparison between Hamas and ISIS: "Hamas has imported, adopted, and multiplied the crimes of ISIS. Hamas entered civilian homes on a Saturday, a holiday, and killed entire families in cold blood. Young and old, they burned bodies and tortured the innocent victims. Jews, Muslims, people of all religions. The cruelty. The lack of humanity. The barbarity of monsters. Not human beings - monsters."
The president also described his conversations with world leaders: "In recent days, I have spoken with leaders from around the world who expressed their deep anger over the attack, including Vice President of the United States Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, heads of the European Union, the UN, NATO, and others who are close to us, like my friend, the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed."
In his words, he called on the world to take several steps against the terrorist organization Hamas. "I call upon all nations worldwide: Firstly, condemn clearly and loudly the actions of Hamas. Just as you condemned the heinous and indefensible actions of ISIS, today they are the same thing."
He further added: "To those countries that have not yet done so: declare Hamas as a terrorist organization. Make it clear that Hamas bears full responsibility for the well-being of the kidnapped hostages and demand their immediate return to Israel. Support Israel, in words and deeds, and Israel will continue to defend itself.
"The government of Israel, Prime Minister Netanyahu, the IDF, and all Israeli security forces have my full support. We will act with full force and unwavering commitment to eliminate the threat against us. We will pursue all those who carry out and support these heinous acts against us. I know that our spirit, the Israeli spirit, will prevail," he said.
"May no other country make the mistake of thinking of acting against us"
The president described to the world his visit to the hospitals this morning. "Unfortunately, there are hundreds of bereaved families all over the country, thousands of wounded who are being treated in hospitals all over the country," he said.
"Today and yesterday, I visited some of the injured at Assaf Harofeh Hospital and Soroka Medical Center in Be'er Sheva, two of the world's top medical centers. If you want to see the great spirit of our nation, the great spirit of the people of Israel, you can see it in hospitals and throughout the State of Israel.
"You will find united and committed citizens determined to emerge victorious. None of the countries in the region should mistakenly think of acting against us. Israel is a strong nation and will mobilize all its strength and power to defend ourselves."
At the end he said a prayer: "I pray for their speedy and complete recovery, I pray for the bereaved families, and I pray for the safety of the hostages. And despite all this, with the unity and support of our brothers and sisters from the Jewish communities around the world, with our friends all over the world, I know that Israel will come out stronger, more durable and more united."