The delegation of ambassadors visiting Israel, led by the Israeli Ambassador to the United States and the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, visited the Gaza envelope region and the Southern Command on Wednesday.
The ambassadors toured the sector and received various security reviews, including a review by the Commander of the Home Front Command, Major General Ori Gordin in the city of Sderot, and a review by the Commander of the Southern Command, General Eliezer Toledano. The ambassadors also toured an Iron Dome embankment a Hamas terrorist tunnel near the Karni crossing.
"This day is one of the highlights of the delegation for me, in light of the goal I set for myself to expose the ambassadors to the truth about what is happening here, especially after Operation Guardian of the Walls in Gaza," said Erdan. "Throughout the operation, I fought in the UN and in the international arena against those who tried to compare us with the terrorist organization Hamas. Anyone who fails to distinguish between the war crimes of a terrorist organization and Israel's right to self-defense - strengthens the extremist forces, encourages terrorist organizations around the world to use civilians as human shields and harms the chances for peace. Today, I saw from their reactions that they understand."
The ambassador added, "During the operation, Hamas committed a double war crime - it both fired rockets at a civilian population in Israel, and also endangered the citizens of Gaza by using them as human shields. It is clear to me that they will return from here with an understanding and knowledge of the truth - Israel is a moral and democratic state that defends itself against murderous terrorist organizations that endanger the entire region."
"I am sure that the next time we have to take military action against terrorism in Gaza, they will work to give us support and breathing space in the international arena. "I will continue to fight so that the moral distortions in the UN will be corrected and so that the UN does not continue to equate a defensive democracy like Israel with a murderous terrorist organization like Hamas," said Erdan.