David Friedman and Yisrael Gantz
David Friedman and Yisrael Gantzצילום: דוברות בנימין

An event was held in the community of Mitzpe Yericho in the Binyamin Regional Council Thursday in honor of former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman.

The event, which took place on the promenade overlooking the Jordan, was attended by Ambassador Friedman, Council Chairman Yisrael Ganz, Adviser to the US Ambassador to Israel, Rabbi Aryeh Lightstone, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Mitzpe Yericho Mayor Aliza Pilichowski, and the leadership of Mitzpe Yericho.

Friedman was gifted by council chairman Ganz with a special book and historical items from the site of ancient Shiloh and a certificate of appreciation from the community of Mitzpe Yericho for his contribution to the building of the Land of Israel and its strengthening in Judea and Samaria.

Ambassador Friedman stated: "I'm overwhelmed to be here, not only because of the amazing scenery, but also because of its significance. We are looking at the last place, the last stop of the people of Israel in exile. The Jordan River, Qasr al-Yahud, from there Joshua brought the people of Israel into the land. The biblical significance of this place is amazing, to see the last stop of the exile and the first stop of the people of Israel entering the land in that very place."

''If you look at the most important document in the history of the United States, the Declaration of Independence, it says that every human being was created in the image of G-d, and hence that every human being has basic rights deriving from that. Our founders were not Jews, but they knew what those rights were because they read the Bible. They knew the route that the Jewish people took from exile to freedom, the promises given to the Jewish people, the exodus from Egypt, the building of the land, the stopping in Shiloh and the move to Jerusalem to build the Temple.

"They understood that the story of the people of Israel is similar to the founding story of the United States. That is why Israel and the United States have always been such good friends for decades. Because our values ​​are the same as yours, Jewish values ​​and Christian values ​​stem from a single biblical source, and are the cradle of American history.

"That's why, as an American, this country is so important to Americans, because hence the values ​​derive like the verse 'Because from Zion shall go forth Torah and the word of G-d will come out of Jerusalem,'" Ambassador Friedman concluded.