Ottawa, ON – The Hon. Pierre Poilievre, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, released the following statement on Israeli Independence Day, Yom Ha’atzmaut:
“In 136 CE, the city of Jerusalem was destroyed, and the Jewish people were exiled from their homeland. As the centuries continued, Jews dreamed that one day, the dispersed could once again be free and independent in the home of their ancestors.
“In 1948, that millennia-long dream finally manifested. The Jewish state of Israel was born.
“Out of the horrors of the Shoah, forces that had sought to destroy the Jewish people throughout history once again reared their ugly heads to extinguish the state of Israel. But against the tide of history Israel would not let them, defending their fledgling state from invasion on all sides and building a prosperous and free nation.
“On Yom Ha’atzmaut, we celebrate the defiant spirit of the Jewish people that has secured Israel as a beacon of freedom and democracy. As Israel continues in its fight against those who seek its destruction, we are comforted in the knowledge that a thousand years from now, the Jewish people will be practicing the same religion, in the same language, on the same land as their ancestors.
“Yom Ha’atzmaut Sameach!”