A top Israeli diplomat was in town to celebrate Hanukkah, meet with representatives from the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia and visit the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History.
Not long after he arrived in the city Thursday, Ofir Akunis, the consul general of Israel in New York, sat down with Metro in Center City to discuss his role, the war in Gaza and antisemitism in the United States.
Akunis was appointed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and started the job in May. He previously served as a government minister and as a member of the Knesset, Israel’s legislature, affiliated with Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party.
This trip was his second to Philadelphia. He said his first visit came in 2017 and included a tour of the Weitzman Museum.
The following interview was edited for length and clarity.
Why did you make the trip here to Philadelphia?
First of all, it’s under my responsibility as consul general of Israel to New York. So under my responsibility is New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Ohio. It’s actually a large area with a lot of Jewish communities.
The goal of my trip is to meet the Jewish communities. Today is the second light of Hanukkah, the second candle of Hanukkah, and we will light a candle together. And I’ll meet the head of the (Jewish) Federation. We’ll talk about the challenges and the current situation here in Philly and in the United States in general.
How close do you think is a deal that would lead to the release of the hostages and a ceasefire?
Last week, it was very close. I think that Hamas changed their mind during the last week, and I’m sorry for that, because last week, it was closer than ever. Now it’s not the situation. I hope that they will open their minds and understand that enough is enough.
Here in Philadelphia, we have seen a pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Pennsylvania. We have also seen antisemitic vandalism. Have you been following this?
I followed. It was a shock, and it was a shame. It was a wakeup call to the American society, not only to the State of Israel. It was a wakeup call because the American society wants the freedom of speech, democracy – the values that we are sharing. Democracy, human rights. Those people, they are not sharing the same values with us, with the Americans, or with the Israelis, or with the Western world.
Those people that you mentioned support the terrorists. It’s not a debate about the final status of the conflict in the Middle East.
I’ve spoken to some Palestinians who have immigrated to the Philadelphia region who have been involved in protests and demonstrations. They say your country, Israel, is committing a genocide. How do you respond to that?
We are talking about liars. We are talking about rude people. The terrorists – they are still supporting them – invaded Israel during a holiday and murdered thousands of innocent people, kidnapped them. Raped innocent women, hundreds of innocent women, then they shot them to death. Where? In the Nova festival, at the music festival.
We didn’t start the fire, and you know it, and they know it, that there was a ceasefire on Oct. 7, at 6:29 in the morning. Chanting and screaming ‘from the river to the sea.’ If you want a Muslim terror state headed by Hamas between the river and the sea, so you want to wipe Israel off of the map, to destroy the State of Israel. So how dare they? They’re very rude people, and they think that they’re educated. I think that they are wrong.
How would you describe the Jewish community in the United States as feeling right now, a little more than a year after the Oct. 7 attack?
The most optimistic thing is that they are united. All the Jewish communities are united. They support Israel. There’s differences between the Jewish communities – secular, the ultra-orthodox, the traditionals, the others. But because of Oct. 7 and the pictures that we saw from the universities and the institutes, I think that their unity is still ongoing, and I’m very glad.
We’re getting ready for a turnover in Washington, D.C, with Donald Trump returning as president. How are you preparing for that and do you think that will change the relationship between Israel and the United States?
The American people decided, and we are working with the current administration. We will work with the new administration, and the State of Israel will always cooperate and collaborate with any American administration that you, the Americans, will decide.
The Anti-Defamation League is reporting a more than 200% increase in antisemitic incidents across the country. How does the consulate try to combat this rise?
Now it’s better. Now the current situation among the campuses, it’s much better than it used to be. I hope that it will continue. There’s a lot of security – I’m talking about New York. Next time I will visit the institutes here.
We are not against people who criticize Israel, but they cannot be antisemitic. They cannot act in violence. If you want us to come and to talk with the people, all of us are willing to, including me.
