Today, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met with the Prime Minister of Romania, Marcel Ciolacu, at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem. Initially, there was an extended meeting between the leaders, attended by the Director-General of the Prime Minister's Office, the Diplomatic Advisor, and the Israeli Ambassador to Romania. From the Romanian side, the Minister of Defense, the Foreign Minister, a Member of Parliament, and the Romanian Ambassador to Israel were present.
"Mr. Prime Minister, we greatly appreciate your presence here to stand by Israel. You are standing with Israel during a period of great unrest," Netanyahu said to Ciolacu. "Romania has always been a friend of Israel, but friendship is measured also in times of need. There is now a need for support from all European countries in Israel's just struggle against these barbarians, these violators of all norms."
According to him, Hamas is "the new Nazis - they murdered children, they beheaded young people and burned them alive, they raped and killed women, they abducted elders, they killed little children in front of their families, and they killed parents in front of their children. They showed no mercy. They were death pits, murders of people hiding in attics. It's exactly like Babi Yar. It's like the story of Anne Frank happened again. The horror is the same horror."
"But unlike the Holocaust, today we have a country, an army, and a people who can fight back. We are not only fighting our own war - we are fighting the war of all civilized nations and all civilized people. Just as the civilized world united in its war against the Nazis and united in its war against ISIS, the civilized world must unite behind Israel in its struggle against Hamas and its defeat."
"I appreciate your solidarity during this time for the sake of the common civilization we share. We will do everything within our power to assist in the evacuation of Romanian citizens from Gaza, to the extent possible," concluded Netanyahu. "We are partners in the aspiration for peace in the Middle East. Such peace will only be possible if this replacement of ISIS is eradicated. No one can make peace with ISIS, no one can make peace with al-Qaida, and no one could have made peace with the Nazis. They must be defeated, and then there will be peace."
"Israel has an absolute right to defend itself"
Ciolacu responded, saying, "First and foremost, we wanted to show you that friends express their solidarity through actions. Romania stands by Israel today. The Romanian society, Israelis in Romania, and Romanians in Israel are mourning the terrible situation that the State of Israel is in as a result of the terrorist attacks by Hamas. We convey our condolences for those who have lost their lives. Unfortunately, among the wounded, there are also Romanian citizens.
"We condemn what happened in Israel and also the terrorist organization Hamas, which operates so barbarically to achieve its goals," he clarified. "The Romanian Parliament was the first parliament in Europe to issue a joint statement of support for both houses of the State of Israel. Romania asks the international community to act on behalf of those who are held as hostages by the terrorist organization Hamas.
"I told Prime Minister Netanyahu that according to humanitarian law, Israel has an absolute right to defend itself against such atrocities," he concluded. "I also appeal to the international community to ensure their support for the opening of humanitarian corridors for the benefit of those free from guilt."