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Israel fighting for all who believe in freedom, Zohar tells JNS Policy Summit

“It is my duty not only to promote Israel’s creativity, but to ensure that Israel’s story is heard,” said the Jewish state’s culture minister.

Miki Zohar
Israeli Minister of Culture and Sports Miki Zohar addresses the inaugural JNS International Policy Summit in Jerusalem, April 27, 2025. Photo by Shahar Yurman.

Israel’s ongoing war against Iranian-backed terrorist groups is the fight of “all who believe in freedom, justice and peace” Israeli Minister of Culture and Sports Miki Zohar told the inaugural JNS International Policy Summit in Jerusalem on Sunday evening.

“We gather her today in Jerusalem, the holy city, and I’m grateful for the opportunity today to address you in this significant week,” the Cabinet minister said, referencing the Jewish state’s upcoming memorial and independence days on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.

“These are days when the Israeli hearts beats with double intensity,” Zohar said. “This year, more than any other, these emotions feel sharper, more painful, and more real than ever. Since Oct. 7, the State of Israel has been facing one the most difficult times in its history.

“It is my duty not only to promote Israel’s creativity, but to ensure that Israel’s story is heard,” said the Jewish state’s culture minister. “From this place, in Jerusalem, I call on the world: Stand with us.”

“The charging by the FBI of Haverford College associate professor Guangtian Ha for harassment and intimidation of a Jewish Israeli professor closes the dotted line between verbal acts of harassment and actionable violence which, when Jews are the recipients, is far too often ignored,” Lori Lowenthal Marcus, of the Deborah Project, told JNS.
Luis Har was freed from captivity in Gaza in a daring Israeli military operation 129 days after he was abducted during the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.
The Jewish state lowered its flags to half-staff at 6:29 a.m. to launch commemorations honoring fallen soldiers and victims of the 2023 assault.
The policy goes “far beyond the boundaries of legitimate political debate,” the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem said.