Israeli PM blasts Aus on Gaza
Weathering fierce global backlash, the Israeli Prime Minister held a press conference in English to set the record straight, as he sees it.
He was asked if Israel's Western partners, who consistently support the Middle Eastern ally's right to defend itself, 'are now struggling to stomach what they're seeing you and your military doing in Gaza'.
'First of all, those who say that Israel has a right to defend itself are also saying, 'but don't exercise that right,'' Mr Netanyahu told reporters.
'When we do what any country would do, faced with this genocidal terrorist organisation that has performed the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust.'
The war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas' October 7 attacks on Israel in 2023.
Militants killed more than 1200 in the shock assault, slaughtering entire families.
Much of the violence was celebrated by perpetrators and sympathisers online.
Israel's furious response has decimated Hamas, but also killed tens of thousands in the process.
Most of the dead are civilians, including women, children and aid workers. More than 100,000 people gathered in Sydney in late July to protest the war in Gaza. Damian Shaw / NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia
Me Netanyahu went on to say that his country was 'actually applying force judiciously, and they know it'.
'They know what they would do if right next to Melbourne, or right next to Sydney, you had this horrific attack,' he said.
'I think you would do at least what we're doing … maybe not as efficiently and as precisely as we're doing it.'
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