Friday, November 25, 2016, New York, NY, … Leaders of the Conference of Presidents today expressed gratitude to the many countries who are providing crucial assistance to Israel in battling the devastating fires that threatened the property and safety of tens of thousands of Israelis. Among those nations sending firefighters and equipment were Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Palestinian Authority, Romania, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine. The U.S. is also deploying personnel and firefighting equipment to assist in extinguishing the remaining blazes. Israel has often responded when other countries faced natural disasters or violent attacks.
“The outpouring of international support for Israel in response to the widespread threats to the safety and property of tens of thousands of Israelis, is an example of international cooperation at its best. We hope all people will join to stop these terrible fires and the destruction they are causing,” said Stephen M. Greenberg, Chairman and Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of the Conference.
The Jewish leaders also said that they were writing leaders of each of the individual countries and urged others to do the same. When we have complaints we make our voices heard to foreign leaders. It is equally, if not more important, to express our appreciation”.
Mr. Greenberg and Mr. Hoenlein added, “Reports that some of the fires were intentionally set in order to inflict large scale destruction, injury and death are a sobering reminder of the evolving and constant security challenges facing Israel. We are disgusted by reports that some news outlets and social media posts celebrated the damage caused by the fires in Israel.
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