Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told the United Nations General Assembly in New York, United States on Monday that his country was thriving despite stiff opposition by non-state actors in the Middle East region.
He accused Iran of backing activities that target Israel negatively.
“Distinguished delegates, Israel is a lighthouse in a stormy sea.
“A beacon of democracy, diverse by design, innovative by nature and eager to contribute to the world — despite being in the toughest neighborhood on earth,” he started off in his speech to the assembly.
Bennett, who replaced his predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu this year, claimed that Iran was allegedly sponsoring forces that seek to destroy his country
He however, said his administration was well equipped to defend itself.
“Israel is, quite literally, surrounded by Hezbollah, Shia militias, Islamic Jihad, and Hamas. On our borders.
“These terror groups seek to dominate the Middle East and spread radical Islam across the world.
“What do they all have in common?
“They all want to destroy my country. And they’re all backed by Iran. They get their funding from Iran, they get their training from Iran, and they get their weapons from Iran.
“Iran’s great goal is crystal clear to anybody who cares to open their eyes: Iran seeks to dominate the region — and seeks to do so under a nuclear umbrella,” Bennett added.
As per who owns the Jerusalem, Bennett insisted that Israel’s current occupation was its ancestral homeland.
This assertion was strongly refuted by the government of Palestine last week while laying claim to East Jerusalem before the assembly.
“We are an ancient nation, returned to our ancient homeland, revived our ancient language, restored our ancient sovereignty,” Bennett added.
The Israel PM appreciated the US for being its country’s consistent ally over the years.
He was also optimistic that Israel will cement bilateral relations with more countries in the Middle East as it had done with UAE, among others.
“First and foremost, the growing ties Israel is forging with Arab and Muslim countries.
“Ties that began 42 years ago with Israel’s historic peace agreement with Egypt, continued 27 years ago with Israel’s peace agreement with Jordan, and even more recently with the “Abraham Accords” — that normalized our relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco. More is to come,” he said.
