BICOM

Israel’s leaders expressed their horror, condolences and solidarity to the Belgian people following yesterday’s deadly double bombing in Brussels, which killed 34 people.

The twin blasts yesterday morning at Zaventem Airport and at a metro station in central Brussels also left at least 212 injured, including an Israeli man from Jerusalem who was reported to have been lightly wounded. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin sent a letter of condolence to King Philippe of Belgium. He said that “the people of Israel share with me in mourning the sad loss of life.” He added that, “Terrorism is terrorism is terrorism, whether it takes place in Brussels, Paris, Istanbul or Jerusalem … I want to emphasize that this struggle that we all share, is against this violent terrorism that continues to kill and maim so many, it is not a fight against Islam.”

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel to express his condolences and “offered Israel’s help and cooperation in the war on terror.” He later said in a speech that, “The chain of attacks from Paris to San Bernardino, from Istanbul to the Ivory Coast and now to Brussels, and the daily attacks on Israel, this is one continuous assault on all of us.” Adding a determined note, Netanyahu said, “What they seek is our utter destruction … We won’t let that happen.”

Meanwhile, Israel’s Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon struck a similar tone. He called for an “unyielding” fight against terror in what he termed “a third World War against our shared values” in the Western world. He explained, “For the last several years, Western civilisation has been under attack by indiscriminate and ruthless radical Islamism, whose goal is to harm and disrupt the lives of citizens in the free world.” Ya’alon warned that it is a war in which “if we don’t deal with using the proper tools, on all levels, will continue to hurt us and wreak havoc.”