As Israel faces a critical juncture in its history with its war on two fronts – with Hamas and Hezbollah – the country’s envoy to India has said it has been attacked more than any other nation in modern times and all its actions are driven by the objective of rooting out radicalism and establishing peace and stability. 

In a wide-ranging, exclusive interview with NDTV on Tuesday, Israeli Ambassador Reuven Azar was also asked about the pager and walkie-talkie explosions in Lebanon, for which Israel is being blamed. He answered that war has a hybrid nature now and, given the attacks on it, Israel has to be in a situation where it not only has to defend itself, but also be able to “surprise its enemy”. 

Mr Azar also spoke about the support Israel has received from the US and India, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session in New York on Monday. 

‘Attacked Like No Other’

To a question on the pager and handheld radio explosions across Lebanon last week, in which at least 37 people were killed and thousands injured and a Mossad hand has been suspected, the ambassador said, “In the past, there used to be either wars against conventional armies or fights against terrorism, but I think that, today, war has a hybrid nature. We have seen it in Israel because we have been attacked like no other country in the history of modern times. We have been attacked not only with rockets and missiles but there have also been cyberattacks; we have been attacked from the air, from the sea, from the land, from tunnels…”

“At the end of the day, you have to create a situation in which you can not only defend yourself but also be able to surprise your enemy. I won’t go into details of what Israel is doing or not doing, but the bottom line is that if we want to achieve stability, we have to show these terrorists that are using uncoventional and unethical and immoral ways of fighting, that we can also surprise them,” he warned. 

Civilian Casualties?

Israel has announced that it has shifted its focus to the northern front with Lebanon and its overnight strikes on the south of the country killed over 550 people, including 50 children. Israel also struck over 1,500 suspected Hezbollah sites around the country as part of what it called “Operation Northern Arrows”. 

Asked about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statement that Lebanese people should not become “human shields” for Hezbollah and the high civilian casualties in Gaza and Lebanon, Mr Azar said most of the 1,700 military targets that Israel targeted in southern Lebanon in the past 48 hours were “embedded” in the homes of civilians. 

“What Hezbollah has done in the past few years is a double war crime. They have been embedding their missiles inside the homes of people to conceal them from Israel and they have been firing indiscriminately at civilians in northern Israel from these installations. So what Israel had to do is meticulously gather intelligence about these locations over a few years and, fortunately we have been able to target and destroy thousands of missiles that were in those areas,” he said.

The ambassador claimed that some of the families that were living there did not evacuate on time. 

“(This was) despite the fact that we called them over the phone, we intercepted radio communications… we tried every way possible to take them out of harm’s way. Despite that,  yes, there were some civilians that were killed as well. But when you look at the magnitude of this – 1,700 military targets in 48 hours – you will see that, actually, this is has been very successful; because at the end of the day, when you compare the damage that would be caused from these missiles to Israeli civilians to the price that the people have to pay, it’s a relatively low price,” he said. 

Mr Azar said every loss of life is tragic and claimed that Israel does whatever is possible to take civilians out of harm’s way. “Fortunately, today, thousands and tens of thousands of civilians from South Lebanon have been evacuated, and that’s a very important thing. We will continue to put pressure on Hezbollah,” he asserted.

‘War Can Be Stopped Right Now’

The ambassador said Israel is not interested in war and claimed that the country has been trying to – along with the US – find a diplomatic solution despite Hezbollah firing 8,300 rockets “in an unprovoked way” at Israel in the last 11 months. He said that if the Hezbollah respects an earlier UN resolution and moves away from the border, there will be a ceasefire. 

“Our civilians will be able to go back to their homes and we can stop the war now. But if Hezbollah continues to be stubborn and continues to fire at Israel and continues to refuse to implement the UN Security Council resolution, this war will continue,” he said. 

On protests in Israel over 700 Israeli defence personnel having lost their lives, Mr Azar insisted that there is “wall-to-wall” consensus in his country that it has to deal with “security threats” in the Gaza Strip and the north of the country. 

“Israel has to go back to a normal life and we cannot do that when we have a threat of imminent attack by terrorists. Now, of course, this has a cost. And yes, there are people that are not satisfied, especially the families that have hostages still in the Gaza Strip. So we will have to deal with the dilemma and we will have to solve the situation because we cannot surrender to Hamas and we are trying to get into a deal that is actually sponsored by the United States and by the Security Council. But, as the spokesperson of the White House has said, Hamas is refusing this deal and therefore we will have to be persistent… we have to create a situation in which these terrorist organisations will no longer attack Israel in the future,” he said. 

‘India Has Suffered Too’

Mr Azar said that the fact that India abstained from a UN General Assembly Resolution demanding that Israel bring an end to its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory shows that India supports a realistic solution.

To a question on whether India can play a peacemaker, the ambassador said, “We appreciate very much the support of India since October 7 (the day of the Hamas attacks last year) and the fact that India condemned the attacks and supported the right for self-defence. I think that the voting of India in the General Assembly is testament that they are following a path of supporting a realistic solution and not something that is completely detached from reality,” he said.

“If we want to see a situation in which the Palestinians rule themselves – this is something that Israel wants to see as well, not just India – we will have to work together to defeat the terrorists and also encourage the more pragmatic and moderate forces within Palestinian society. We will have to fight radicalism in West Asia because this is actually the source of the instability we are seeing around us. And India knows that very well because you have been suffering from that kind of radicalism around you,” he added.

On PM Modi’s meeting with Palestinian President Abbas in which he expressed concern over the situation in Gaza and also called for an end to these hostilities, the ambassador said, “We also want to see an end to the hostilities. We are a peace-loving country. We are a democracy. We thrive because we maintain periods of stability. And we need the help of our friends in order to restore that stabilty. And it’s going to be up to India to decide to what extent it wants to be involved.” 

He said that Israel and other “pragmatic countries” can be a corridor between India and Europe once peace prevails. 

Broad Support In US

The ambassador said there is broad support for Israel in the US and Vice President Kamala Harris has not said she will limit assistance to the country if she is elected. 

“Actually, 80% of American people support Israel and its right to defend itself. And this happens both on the Republican and Democratic sides. We enjoy overwhelming support in Congress, and we saw that when Prime Minister Netanyahu visited the United States and gave his fourth speech in Congress – the foreign leader who gave the most number of speeches before both houses of Congress. So I think that our situation in the United States is solid, and I’m confident that we’ll find a way to cooperate with any American administration that will be elected in  November,” he said.