Address
at the Jerusalem Day Ceremony at Ammunition
Hill
(June 6, 2005)
Distinguished
President of the State of Israel,
Bereaved Families,
Government Ministers (who participated in the special
cabinet meeting we held here today, and made decisions
regarding the development of Jerusalem as the eternal
capital of Israel forever and ever),
President of the Supreme Court,
Speaker of the Knesset,
Commanders in the IDF, Police and Security Forces,
Mayor of Jerusalem,
Commanders, Ladies and Gentlemen,
On
that terrible night, at the dawn of the 27th day
of Iyar, 5727, the soldiers of the Paratroopers Brigade,
commanded by Motta
Gur, were ready to storm this fortified
position, Ammunition
Hill. Behind them was the
Israeli part of Jerusalem, wounded by bombardments
which had not ceased since that morning. In front
of them, beyond this hill, was the top of Mount
Scopus,
the Israeli enclave, which would be in serious danger
if it were not reached by dawn. In the south
of the city, the soldiers of the Jerusalem Brigade,
commanded by Eliezer Amitai, had already conquered
Armon Hanatziv, and the “Naknik” and “Pa’amon” posts.
From the north, the 10th Armored Brigade, commanded
by Uri Ben-Ari, made its way through the “Radar” and “Sheik
Abed El Aziz” posts, towards Nebi Samuel.
It is symbolic that the fighters of three reserve troops
brigades – the most explicit manifestation of “Army
of the People”, were the redeemers of Jerusalem.
On that night, Head of Command Uzi
Narkis suddenly
announced that the General Staff suggested that the
attack be postponed until morning so that it could
receive aerial support. Motta assembled the commanders
for consultation and they unanimously decided: We
cannot wait. We must attack tonight.
This is how they were, the paratroopers. That
is how they were trained: to be dedicated to the mission,
to attack, to risk their lives for their people. They
could not wait until the break of day. A fire
burned in their hearts. The fire of Jerusalem. In
the storm of battle that raged here, many of them paid
with their lives. There is no stone on this hill
which was not soaked with the blood of fighters. We
will forever cherish those who, for our sake, bridged
the two sections of our eternal capital – a bridge
between the dream of generations and the reality of
our time. The vision of the prophets was realized. Prayer
turned into salvation.
For 19 years Jerusalem was divided, besieged, reclusive,
and at the end of every path, and for double that time – 38
years – it has been united and open.
The majority of the Israeli population has not known
a different reality. The younger generation could
not visualize the line crossing the city, strewn with
mines and barbed wire. They could not imagine
the enemy soldiers on the walls of the Old
City, and
no access to the Temple
Mount, the Western
Wall, and
the Mount
of Olives. They could not imagine that
the city’s suburbs, from Ramot and Neveh Yaacov
in the north, to Gilo and Har Homa in the south, were
barren hills, with cannons aimed at the heart of Jerusalem.
For us, there is only one Jerusalem, and no other. It
will be ours forever, and will never again be in the
hands of foreigners. We will honor and cherish
all lovers of Jerusalem, of all faiths and religions. We
will carefully guard all its sites of prayer, churches
and mosques, and freedom of worship will be ensured,
which was not the case when others ruled it. We
will fearlessly face the entire world and will ensure
the future of united Jerusalem. For Jerusalem
is the anchor, root of life, and faith of the Jewish
people and we will never again part with it.
Whoever wishes to know this should open the Bible,
read and understand.
Historic Jerusalem, the heart of the Jewish people
for over 3000 years, will always be one, united, the
capital of the State of Israel forever and ever.
Sources: Prime Minister's Office |