Netanyahu wants to be friends with Iran’s people again. Illustrative image of Netanyahu. Photo Courtesy of UN-Photo/Marco Castro
Israel and Iran have been archenemies on a national level for decades, but once upon a time the countries were actually secret allies. Despite the Iranian leadership’s professed hatred of Israel in more recent times, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a point to tell the Iranian people that he believes good times of old can be had again.
“By calling daily for Israel’s destruction, the regime hopes to instill hostility between us. This is wrong. We are your friend, not your enemy,” said Netanyahu in comments published to his office’s website and Facebook page. “We’ve always distinguished between the Iranian people and the Iranian regime… I yearn for the day when Israelis and Iranians can once again visit each other freely in [Iran’s capital of] Tehran and Esfahan, in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.”
Netanyahu—whose comments were also available via video that included Farsi subtitles—said he hoped that “this message reaches every Iranian—young and old, religious and secular, man and woman.”
Netanyahu repeatedly contrasted the Iranian regime with its people, noting that “you have a proud history. You have a rich culture. Tragically, you are shackled by a theocratic get phentermine prescription tyranny… The regime is cruel—the people are not; the regime is aggressive—the people are warm.”
He also expressed the desire that the Iranian people someday live in freedom, noting that the current regime instills fear, censors the internet, restricts electoral freedoms by preventing “thousands of candidates from competing in elections,” and robs funds that could go to the poor to finance the “mass murderer” Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad. Iran, a long-time ally of Assad, has providing money, training, and personnel to help the dictator fight off a revolution sparked by a grassroots civilian effort.
In his comments, Netanyahu recalled the brief Iranian people’s reform effort in 2009, including the bloody means used by the regime to crush the early-stage revolution. He also looked ahead to the future.
“In a free Iran you will once again be able to flourish without limit,” said Netanyahu. “But today, a cruel regime is trying to keep you down… The fanatics must not win. Their cruelty must not conquer our compassion.
“Our two peoples can work together for a more peaceful and hopeful future for both of us. We must defeat terror and tyranny and we must ensure that freedom and friendship win the day.”
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, January 22, 2017)