Herzog Urges National Unity in Memorial Day Address at Western Wall
Speaking at the national Memorial Day ceremony at the Western Wall on Tuesday night, President Isaac Herzog urged Israelis to set aside political divisions and work toward unity.
He spoke out against internal discord, saying, “Enough division! Enough polarization! Enough hatred!” and called for security forces to be removed from political disputes. He warned that polarization might lead to the destruction of the state of Israel “by our own hands.”
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Herzog paid tribute to bereaved families who have endured multiple losses, citing stories from Jewish, Muslim, Druze, and Bedouin communities whose members have fallen across generations. “We have seen how the two words ‘cleared for publication’ can destroy an entire world,” he said.
Drawing on widely known tragedies—like that of Capt. Arnon Benvansti Vespi, the third generation in his family to fall in war—Herzog said such sacrifice forms the “silver platter” on which the state exists. “Thanks to them, we endure,” he said.
“Peace was, and remains, our greatest yearning,” Herzog said, adding that the Jewish people will never renounce its right to remain “sovereign in our homeland.”
As the ceremony attendees grieved those who fell over the past year, particular attention was paid to the hostages still held in Gaza. “A whole nation is missing you, worrying for you, crying your cry,” Herzog said, addressing the remaining hostages. “Not to rest and not to be still. Not even for a moment. To act with all our might, by every means, to take one more step, and another, until all of you come home.”
