Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said that Israel’s actions are stemming flow of “many more millions”, preventing a much greater refugee crisis in Europe.
Netanyahu made the comments in a press conference in Jerusalem alongside Belgium’s Prime Minister Charles Michel who was making a state visit to Israel.
Speaking of Islamic terror, Netanyahu referred to it as “the great challenge of terror” that “emanates unequivocally from radical Islam.”
Netanyahu said, “It brings tremendous misery to our region and precedes elsewhere with unrestricted violence. Israel has been at the forefront of the countries that fight militant Islam. We share our inteligence on terrorism.”
“I think in a larger sense, Prime Minister, it’s important to recognise that Israel is the strongest force in the Middle East that prevents the collapse of the Western part of the Middle East,” Netanyahu said.
“If that were to happen, we would have untold misery to many, many more millions of residents of the Middle East and a great increase flow to Europe.”
“I think in this sense, Israel is doing an important service for the peoples of Europe, including Belgium,” Netanyahu added.
The prime minister also attributed the stalled peace process to “the persistent Palestinian refusal” to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. “This is the core of our particular conflict. I look forward to the day when we have Palestinians who are willing to recognize, finally, the Jewish state. That will be the beginning of peace and a great step forward to achieving it,” said Netanyahu.
The Belgium Prime Minister responded positively, also expressing the need to combat radical Islam. You can see the full exchange below.
