President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday exhorted Israelis to stand united and steadfast as the country waged a military campaign against Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip, and warned that the enemy sought to "kindle hatred" between the country's Jewish majority and its Arab minority.
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"We have to reject every urge toward hatred and racism, toward different groups among us," Herzog said in a national televised address.
Video: President Herzog speaks to the nation on November 1, 2023 / Credit: GPO
Hamas terrorists launched a surprise attack on Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, killing 1,400 people and taking more than 200 hostages. Israel retaliated with a massive call-up of troops and the launch of Operation Iron Swords to topple Hamas.
Israeli ground forces supported by air and sea have moved into parts of the Gaza Strip, where they've encountered resistance.
Prior to the Oct. 7 attack, Herzog emerged as the chief proponent of a compromise amid a divisive plan to reform Israel's judicial system that prompted mass protests against the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In the wake of the Hamas assault, leaders of the Opposition joined a national unity government and Herzog on Wednesday called on Israelis to come together in the face of what he called a "monstrous enemy."
"The Israeli spirit is an unbreakable spirit, a windstorm, a spirit that rises unbroken from the ashes, and spreads its strength and leaves no one untouched," he said.
