Consul General of Israel speaks in Athens about the war against Hamas
An Israeli woman who has served in her country's embassies throughout the world spoke Thursday to a civic organization in Athens about the war waged between the terrorist group Hamas and the nation of Israel.
Anat Sultan-Dadon, the consul general of Israel to the southeastern United States, was a guest of the Athens Torch Club, a group composed primarily of retired University of Georgia professors and business professionals in Athens. The Athens club is the second largest in the U.S., according to club President David Lunde.
She spoke on the same day that an antisemitism bill passed the Georgia House and Senate by an overwhelming vote. Gov. Brian Kemp has said he plans to sign the bill into law.
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The bill, according to Sultan-Dadon, mirrors the definition set by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, and has been adopted by more than 30 nations, including the U.S.
“It has now been adopted on the state level in Georgia as well,” she said at the dinner gathering.
Sulton-Dadon, whose office is in Atlanta, has previously held roles at embassies in Cameroon, the Netherlands and Australia. Her office covers seven states in the South.
“Antisemitism is about a different lens through which Israel is judged,” she said, adding that having a definition is a first step in addressing the problem, which is also occurring in Georgia and on college campuses.
At the meeting, she was asked to describe the society of Israel, which includes Jewish-Israeli and Arab-Israeli.
The Arab-Israeli are integral part of Israel society, she said, as they are involved in the judicial system, government ministries, education and all walks of life.
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And what happened on Oct. 7, when the Hamas extremist attacked, killed and took hostages affected all people of Israel, according to the consul.
“It was not only Jewish-Israeli who were massacred, it was also Arab-Israeli,” she said, adding that it was also Arab-Israeli who came to help those affected by the violence.
Currently there are 136 hostages, of which 132 were kidnapped on Oct. 7, she said.
“Unfortunately, we are dealing on the other side with an enemy that has no regard for human life, no regard for any of the values that we all hold dear,” Sultan-Dadon said.
She said the international community is not putting pressure on Hamas to end the fighting.
“This is about our survival. We are united in the determination to know that we will never see such images again,” she said.
The war is complicated, she said, in that Israel does take measures to minimize harm to civilians “while Hamas at the same time is making every effort in order to ensure the maximum harm to their own people. The loss of innocent life is tragic.”
Calls for a cease fire in the region should be directed at Hamas, an organization she said has a declared goal of annihilating of the state of Israel and the Jewish people.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Consul General of Israel speaks in Athens about the war against Hamas
