British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab on Friday published a special message ahead of the holiday of Rosh Hashanah, which begins at sundown on Sunday night.
“I send my warmest wishes to the British Jewish community and to Jewish communities around the world for the Jewish New Year and high holidays,” he wrote.
“Rosh Hashanah is a special time to reflect. This year many will reflect on the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau and Bergen Belsen. My father grew up knowing that the loved ones he left behind when he fled Czechoslovakia were systematically slaughtered for one simple reason. They were Jews,” added Raab.
“I would like to reassure the Jewish community in the UK and worldwide: the UK is committed to your safety and wellbeing, and stands alongside you in the fight against racism and intolerance,” he stressed.
I thank the community for their invaluable contribution to the UK and to our heritage, and wish you all a happy and peaceful new year. Shana Tova and Chatima Tova!” concluded Raab.
Raab was appointed Foreign Secretary in the cabinet of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who served himself as Foreign Secretary in the past.
Former Prime Minister Theresa May, who preceded Johnson, is a strong supporter of Israel and the Jewish community as well and repeatedly denounced anti-Semitism while in office.
Johnson himself praised Israel in an interview with the UK-based Jewish News two weeks before taking over as Prime Minister, saying that “wild horses wouldn’t keep me away” from becoming the latest Prime Minister to visit the Jewish state.
He described himself as a “passionate Zionist” and Israel as “great country” that “I love”.
(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)