if isreal is forced to stand alone israel will stand alone
JERUSALEM — This morning, Israelis stopped for two minutes of silence to remember the six million Jews butchered by the Nazis and their allies during World War II. The moment of contemplation came a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected international pressure to halt the war in Gaza in a fiery speech. “If Israel is forced to stand alone, Israel will stand alone,” he said yesterday, amid calls for restraint from a growing chorus of world leaders who have criticized the heavy toll caused by Israel’s military offensive against Hamas in Gaza. His message was delivered in a setting that typically avoids politics on one of the most solemn dates on the country’s calendar.
“I say to the leaders of the world: No amount of pressure, no decision by any international forum will stop Israel from defending itself,” he said, speaking in English. “Never again is now.”
Israel’s order for Palestinians to evacuate eastern Rafah is a “dangerous escalation that will have consequences,” a senior Hamas official warned this morning. The official, Sami Abu Zuhri, told the Reuters news agency that the U.S. also “bears responsibility for this terrorism,” in an apparent reference to Washington’s support for Israel. Meanwhile, Israel accused the militant group of having “sabotaged” a possible cease-fire deal. In a statement released this morning, the Israeli prime minister’s office appeared to strike out at comments from top Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh yesterday accusing Israel of torpedoing efforts to reach a deal. “The claim that Prime Minister Netanyahu and not Hamas is the one who sabotaged the hostage release deal is a complete lie and a deliberate deception of the public,” the statement said. “The truth is completely the opposite. Hamas is the one that sabotages every deal by not moving a millimeter from its extreme demands that no government in Israel can accept.”Video captured by NBC News’ crew on the ground in Gaza this morning showed families leaving eastern Rafah, with their few possessions in tow.Cars and trucks could be seen driving away from the area, their roofs loaded with stacked mattresses, rolled-up blankets and other necessities.
