Israel’s Ambassador to Berlin Ron Prosor said the Western world must stand with Israel as it fights the “bloodthirsty animals” of Hamas.
Speaking to POLITICO’s transatlantic podcast Power Play, the diplomat said militants from the armed Palestinian group “will pay a price” for their recent terror attack against Israel, which left more than 1,200 people dead in what Prosor called the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.
“This is civilization against barbarity. This is good against bad,” Prosor said. “This is people who basically act as animals and do not have any, any respect for children, women.”
Prosor was doubling down on language by Israel’s Defense Minister Yoan Gallant, who sparked controversy by saying Israel was fighting “human animals.”
Talking about Israel’s retaliatory measures against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Prosor said the goal can no longer be containment, as trying to contain Islamic jihadists “does not and will never work.”
Israel has thus decided to move “from containment to eradication.”
“It means removing the Islamic state of Hamas and all its military infrastructures from our borders,” he said. “It’s like ISIS was seen as an undefeatable ideology rather than a military organization.”
“Now, this task seemed difficult and even daunting at times,” he added. “But if we really stand together, we are able and we should be able to do that.”
Israel’s retribution against Hamas is being scrutinized internationally. In retaliation for Hamas’ assault, Israel has launched a powerful counteroffensive in Gaza, killing more than 1,100 Palestinians according to Gaza’s health ministry, and putting the coastal strip of land under “complete siege.”
This has drawn some backlash from Israel’s Western allies, with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warning that Israel’s blockade of Gaza may have breached international law. In particular, Western allies are increasingly worried about the rising number of civilian casualties in Gaza, only bound to worsen with a siege.
But to Prosor, “all gloves are off.” And asked about the impact of Israel’s assault on Palestinian people who do not support Hamas, the ambassador didn’t mince any words.
“The people that you saw out, raping, killing and shooting families, little children and burning people alive in their own homes — those are the people in Gaza,” he said. “So in essence, trying to differentiate that is a real problem.”
Israel will keep trying to spare civilians, Prosor said, but he added that “this time around, we have to really destroy this terror infrastructure.”
As the conflict drags on, the ambassador said Israel is worried that the war could escalate into more than one front. But Western support, including the U.S.’s decision to send aircraft carriers, can deter other parties — such as Iran — from entering the conflict.
