British News Agency

Israeli President Isaac Herzog warned against polarization and division in the country during his speech at a ceremony commemorating the heroes of the Yom Kippur War.

Herzog said that in a speech he delivered two weeks before October 7, he had also expressed concern over the threat that polarization, division and baseless hatred could tear Israel apart from within, adding that he repeated the same warning at the ceremony on Mount Herzl.

Noting that 53 years have passed since the Yom Kippur War, Herzog said that the State of Israel and Israeli society are once again going through a difficult test and that this test has not yet ended.

Herzog said that debates over the path Israel should follow are an inseparable part of democracy and that differing views are legitimate and vital. However, he stressed that disagreements must not be allowed to turn into social division.

Recalling that Israel is in an election period, Herzog said, “We have the right to hold different views from one another, but we do not have the right to abandon one another.”

At the end of his speech, Herzog addressed the entire people of Israel, saying, “Elections are not a civil war.”