Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel called for a two-state solution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict and declared that Benjamin Netanyahu’s rule must end in order to achieve lasting peace for Israel.
Emanuel’s remarks came Wednesday night as he was honored by the Simon Wiesenthal Center with its humanitarian Award at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. The divisiveness of the Israel-Hamas war that began Oct. 7 after Hamas’ coordinated terrorist attacks was evident as a few dozen attendees booed and angrily left the ceremony as Emanuel spoke. “Stop talking!” one woman yelled as she left the ballroom.
But Emanuel was unwavering in his message to the room full of prominent entertainment industry leaders and major figures in philanthropy and civic organizations. Emanuel tore into Netanyahu as a narcissist who greatly compromised Israel’s security with his aggressive policies. He also criticized Netanyahu for having no plan in place for managing the Gaza region after the Hamas war is over.
“It’s a painful and crucial moment for all of us who are Jews, for all of us who love Israel,” Emanuel said. The situation calls for “a political, two-state solution that delivers peace, security and dignity to all.”
On Netanyahu, Emanuel asserted: “Israel is being led by a man who doesn’t want a peaceful solution. He only wants to secure his own power and political survival…He is an agent of chaos, hatred division and destruction — and enough is enough.”
Emanuel acknowledged the tragedy of civilian casualties and suffering among Palestinians in Gaza. But he squarely put the blame for the war on Hamas and the coordinated terror attacks it unleashed on Oct. 7, leaving more than 1,200 dead and more than 250 hostages kidnapped. At present, 125 hostages are still unaccounted for, according to a May 17 report by the BBC.
“There is no contradiction in saying that Israel is justified in fighting to free the hostages and destroy Hamas [and] that we should mourn the deaths of Palestinian civilians and seek to minimize casualties, that we should bring to justice settlers who commit violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, and to call for new leadership in Israel that will eliminate Hamas but also find a political solution for the region.”
More to come
Source Agencies
