“Israel will win this war no matter what,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Tuesday (March 12) during an video-link address to the AIPAC Conference in Washington DC.
Netanyahu delivered his remarks at the annual convention of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), a powerful pro-Israel lobbying group courted by anyone and everyone in the legislative and executive branches of the US government.
“I want to say a few words. I want to say a few words to you, Mr. President, and to our wonderful friends at AIPAC. Thank you for standing with Israel at all times and especially during these trying times. Thank you, AIPAC,” Netanyahu said.
“I deeply appreciate it, the support we’ve received from President Biden and the administration and I hope it will continue. But let me be clear, Israel will win this war no matter what,” he emphasized.
“To win this war, we must destroy the remaining Hamas battalions in Rafah. If not, Hamas will regroup, rearm and reconquer Gaza and then we’re back to square one. And that’s an intolerable threat that we cannot accept.
“We will destroy Hamas, free our hostages and ensure that Gaza doesn’t ever pose a threat to Israel again.
“We will finish the job in Rafah while enabling the civilian population to get out of harm’s way.
“We’ve taken measures to minimize civilian casualties that no other army has taken in history. Just ask Colonel John Spencer, a world expert on urban warfare, in charge of urban warfare at West Point. We have taken measures to minimize civilian casualties that no other army has taken in history.
So to our friends in the international community, I say this: You cannot say you support Israel’s right to exist and to defend itself and then oppose Israel when it exercises that right.
“You cannot say you support Israel’s goal of destroying Hamas and then oppose Israel when it takes the actions necessary to achieve that goal.
“You cannot say that you oppose Hamas’s strategy of using civilians as human shields and then blame Israel for the civilian casualties that result from this Hamas cynical strategy.
“For Israel, every civilian death is a tragedy. For Hamas, every civilian death is a strategy. So it is wrong and immoral to hold Israel to a standard for avoiding civilian casualties that no other country on earth is held to.
“My friends, I want to assure you, none of these pressures will stop us. Israel’s very future, its very survival is at stake. We have no other option but total victory and that victory is in and within reach.
“I know that the overwhelming majority of the American people stand with us. I know that the overwhelming majority of Congress stands with us. I know that you stand with us. I know that you’re working tirelessly, day in and day out, to get us the tools so we can finish the job faster.
“And on behalf of the united people of Israel, I want to say thank you, AIPAC. Thank you for everything you’re doing for Israel. God bless Israel. God bless America. Thank you.
“Some people would make you believe that the people of Israel are disunited. In fact, some people would have you believe there is the prime minister and then there is the people of Israel.
“The truth of the matter is that the people of Israel overwhelmingly support the policies set forth by myself and my government. They overwhelmingly support the need for total victory. Overwhelmingly. They overwhelmingly oppose the idea of having a Palestinian state rammed down our throat.
“We just had a vote in the Knesset, to illustrate the point I just made, 99 to 9 supporting this position. And you know what? It’s not irrational. It’s because they think that giving now a Palestinian state after the October 7th massacre will be the greatest reward for terrorism in modern times.
“They overwhelmingly reject the idea that we should implant, after we’ve destroyed Hamas in Gaza, the PA that still inculcates its children towards terrorism and the annihilation of Israel.
“They want a future of peace, a future of security that is purchased by a resounding victory.
“And as I say, the possibilities for this victory, the possibilities that are opened up are immense, but they require that one word: victory. And I will repeat it again, victory, victory, victory. No substitute for that and we will achieve it together.
“Thank you, AIPAC,” the prime minister said.
