Yuli Edelstein in New York
Yuli Edelstein in New YorkPublic Relations

Knesset Speaker MK Yuli Edelstein (Likud), Donald Trump and Joan Rivers - who recently passed away and was represented by her daughter Melissa - were awarded honorary prizes on Tuesday in New York for being among the 100 people most influencing the lives of Jews worldwide in 2014.

The prize was given to Edelstein by the Jewish paper Algemeiner, which hosted the event, for his "struggle for the truth," explaining that he "influenced positively through his actions for the Jewish people in the world and in Israel."

Jewish community leaders were in attendance at the event, as well as Jewish businessmen and the Israeli Consul General in New York, Ido Aharoni.

"Today unfortunately there is no concept of pure, ultimate truth," said Edelstein while accepting the award. "The 'truth' of the claims by others on our land does not exist."

Noting the historical connection of the Jewish people to Israel, Edelstein referenced the Biblical patriarchs saying "when I leave my home I walk on paths where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob walked. And that's the truth regarding our rights to the land."

"When (Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud) Abbas shouts at the UN about rights to the land - that's a complete lie!" emphasized Edelstein. Switching to another topic, he added "whoever claims that an agreement with Iran is a good path to peace is lying, because the truth is that they are approaching nuclear weapons, and the world must act now before it's too late."