In his introduction at the start of The Jerusalem Post’s virtual conference The Second Front, President Isaac Herzog called for all who have “goodwill” to cry out “Never again,” repeating the message used to decry the atrocities of the Holocaust and to demand that the Jewish people never again be subjected to such horror.
"The massacres of October 7 have brought memories of some of the darkest moments of history right into our present," the president said, referring to the Holocaust. "The scope and horror of the atrocities are painfully familiar to our people, but the speed at which denial began to spread and Jewish suffering was dismissed exposed another painful truth: Antisemitism does not belong to some other time and place; it is right here."
He called out for all who have "goodwill" to cry out "Never again", repeating the message used to recall the atrocities of the Holocaust and to demand that the Jewish people never again be massacred as such.
Herzog pointed out how “in the wake of the massacre, many found ways to rationalize, contextualize, or even excuse themselves. This has always been the way about antisemitism. The reasoning may shift, but the bottom line is the same: the blame is always on the Jews. Corrupt ideologies often begin with the Jews [as targets], but rarely end with the Jews.”
Thank you Biden
He proceeded to thank US President Joe Biden for "laying out a clear national strategy to combat antisemitism well before the start of the war: actually, the first of its kind."
He then expressed gratitude towards US Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Antisemitism Deborah Lipstadt for "the clear voice of advocacy and reason she's offered in these troubled times."
His thanks reached beyond the US to world leaders altogether, saying that those who are "doing everything in their power to fight the familiar poison of antisemitism on their soil" must be commended.
Finally, he highlighted the Post’s central role in the fight for Israel’s place in the world and in combating antisemitism – such as at the Second Front conference, saying that “The Jerusalem Post has been a critical source of reliable information and connection for millions and millions of viewers worldwide in this time of war,” he said.
“It remains, quite simply, the website and the paper of the Jewish people.”