Netanyahu: Nothing will stop Israel from defending itself

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned the "volcano of anti-Semitism" and international criticism of Israel's war in Gaza, insisting that no amount of pressure will stop his country from defending itself.
"If Israel is forced to stand alone, it will stand alone," Netanyahu said.
Speaking at a Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at the Yad Vashem memorial in Jerusalem, he lamented that when the Nazis killed six million Jews during World War II, his people "were completely defenseless against those who wanted to destroy us.
"Not a single nation came to our aid," he said, as the Israeli flag was flown at half-mast in mourning and Holocaust survivors prepared to light torches.
"Today we again face enemies who want to destroy us," Netanyahu said to the large crowd gathered for the ceremony, AFP reported.
A yellow chair sat empty in a nod to the hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza.
"I tell world leaders that no pressure, no decision in any international forum will prevent Israel from defending itself," Netanyahu said.
He deplored the sharp rise in worldwide criticism of Israel over the Gaza war, which flared up after the unprecedented attack by Hamas on October 7.
And he condemned "this terrible volcano of anti-Semitism" which, in his words, is growing all over the world.
Netanyahu also compared the protests seen at universities in the United States and around the world to discrimination against Jews at German universities during World War II.
"What a perversion of justice and history," he said.
The criticism, he said, is not because of "the actions we take, but because we exist ... because we are Jews. You will not tie our hands ... Israel will continue to fight human evil ... until victory." he said./BGNES