Israeli Foreign Minister Stops Interview To Dismiss Gaza Question, Highlight Israeli Pain

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen interrupted a Channel 4 News interview with Foreign Secretary James Cleverly to dismiss questions being asked about the legality of Israel’s siege on Gaza and to underscore the suffering of Israelis.

Addressing Cleverly, who was visiting Tel Aviv and southern Israel in a show of solidarity with Israelis, journalist Secunder Kermani noted the “horrific scenes” in Israel and “grim scenes in Gaza.”

“I wonder,” he asked, “do you have any concerns about the nature and scale of the Israeli response to this awful attack, as many people do across the world?”

Emphasising Israel’s right to self-defence, Cleverly acknowledged the nation’s efforts to regain individuals kidnapped and ensure security.

He said: “I’ve said back when I was in the UK that of course Israel has a right to self-defence… We discussed Israel’s work to minimise civilian casualties.”

He continued that the challenges posed by Hamas embedding its “military capabilities, its terror capabilities within civilian populations.”

Kermani, however, pointed out the increasingly dire humanitarian conditions: “Is that happening? 100s of children have died, there’s a block aid on fuel…”

It was at this point that Cohen intervened, abruptly cutting off the journalist to account for the toll the conflict has taken on Israeli lives.

“We actually lost 1,200 people that were murdered,” he said. “Young people in the dancing party… Murdered, one by one. Innocent people. We are living close to monsters, to inhuman people and we are fighting for our home and we will win.”