Netanyahu in Florida: Israel “Stronger Than Ever,” Calls on Jews to Stand Firm Against Antisemitism

[Videos below.] Addressing a large crowd at a JNS gathering in Surfside, Florida, Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu said yesterday that Israel has emerged from the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas assault in a position of unprecedented strength. More than two years after the attack, he told the audience at the Shul of Bal Harbour, “Israel has come out of this war stronger than ever before.”

Netanyahu pointed to Israel’s economic performance as a key measure of that strength, highlighting major developments in energy and technology. “Stronger than ever before economically. What does strong mean? Well, we just signed a $37 billion gas deal,” he said. “That’s strong. We just had Nvidia – they decided to have a massive investment in Israel, and we welcome it.”

Turning to diplomacy, Netanyahu said Israel’s expanding network of regional ties is a direct outcome of national power and resolve. “We have opened up opportunities for peace that have never existed before. In the first term of President Trump’s office, we did the Abraham Accords that brought four historic peace accords with four Arab states,” he said. “We’re committed to do more.”

Summing up that approach, he told the audience, “It’s peace through strength. It’s prosperity through strength.”

Netanyahu also spent considerable time addressing rising antisemitism, directing a forceful message to American Jews. “I say to you, members of the Jewish community of the United States, the last thing you should do before antisemitic attacks, as they attack you – the last thing you should do is lower your head and seek cover,” he said. “That’s not what you should do. You should stand up and be counted. You should fight back.”

He urged active resistance to those who seek to marginalize the Jewish community. “You should delegitimize your delegitimizers,” he said. “Nobody will fight for you more than you fight for yourself.”

Linking Jewish confidence abroad to Israel’s standing, Netanyahu added, “When Israel is strong, others want to partner with us. You stand up and be counted, and you will see the difference.” He followed with a simple exhortation: “Don’t be afraid.”

Pressing the point further, he said, “Don’t cower. Don’t lower your head. Speak up. Stand up. Fight back. That’s the important thing: fight, fight, fight. And then shall win, win, win with God’s help.”

The prime minister also addressed ongoing efforts to recover the remains of Ran Gvili, described as the last remaining hostage in Gaza. “We shall return him and we’re working on it right now,” Netanyahu said. “He shall be back. The first one in, last one out, but he’ll be back.”

Netanyahu closed with praise for Washington, underscoring what he described as exceptional backing from the United States. He referred to the “friendship of the United States and the support of a president like no other: President Donald J. Trump.”

Reflecting on American leadership during the war, he said, “I appreciated the fact that at the beginning stages of the war President Biden came to us well. But President Trump has been unflinching, consistent. He never wavers,” adding, “His gut, his heart – we don’t say ‘gut,’ we say his kishkes – his instinctive support for the State of Israel, his understanding of what is right and what is just.”

Netanyahu concluded by emphasizing the impact of close coordination between Jerusalem and Washington. “That’s been there from day one, and we have shown what happens when the president of the United States and the prime minister of Israel have no daylight between them: Wonderful things. Wondrous things can happen,” he said.