Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decried the recent violence inflicted on Ethiopian Jews, condemning the murders of Yemanu Binyamin Zalka and Destao Tsakol, during his address at the state memorial ceremony for Ethiopian Jews who died on their journey to Israel.
During his speech, Netanyahu said he had called for the “full weight of the law” to be brought against the murderers, and promised to continue to fight against “manifestations of violence, racism, and discrimination of any kind.”
“I do not say this as lip service,” he added, “I attribute the highest importance to achieving these goals.”
Netanyahu also promised that the state would continue its mission to find Haymanut Kasau, an Ethiopian girl who went missing two years ago, comparing the mission to return her home to the mission to return hostages from Gaza after October 7, 2023.
“I want to say something else regarding the vile behavior of those murdering youths,” Netanyahu stated. “They are dust, dust at your feet. They are considered as nothing compared to the youth of the Ethiopian community, who enlist heroically in the defense of Israel, in the War of Redemption, and throughout the years.”
“I am in awe of them,” he added.
Netanyahu also recounted the story of Gadi Marsha, an Ethiopian boy who walked hundreds of kilometers in order to reach Israel in 1979.
Marsha went on to enlist, becoming the first Jewish tracker officer in IDF history, before being killed on the Gaza border.
“In Gadi’s footsteps follow many, many youths of ‘Beta Israel,’” he concluded Marsha’s story. “Their right to be among the builders of the state, among the defenders of the state, that right inspires immense awe.”
Ethiopian integration succeeding, Netanyahu says
Integration for Ethiopians in Israel was succeeding at a high level, Netanyahu said. He cited the rates of high school education and participation in gifted programming, as well as a rise in the average wage and a general “closing of social gaps” among the Ethiopian community.
“All of this does not mean we have already reached the ‘rest and the inheritance,’” he said. “There are ongoing challenges that the government, local authorities, the community leadership, and I, as prime minister, face with combined forces. But there is a clear and sharp direction here: We are establishing the optimal integration of Israeli citizens of Ethiopian descent into Israeli society.”
Several initiatives to promote Ethiopian heritage were also announced during Netanyahu’s speech, including a visitors’ center and a spiritual center in Jerusalem, and a “house for the preservation of the heritage of Ethiopian Jews” in Ariel. Netanyahu also stated that the government was making an effort to locate and preserve ancient sacred Ethiopian texts.
“As we mark 59 years since the unification of our capital Jerusalem, we will continue to watch over it,” Netanyahu said. “The memory of those who perished, who came from Ethiopia, will also be enshrined with us in our hearts from generation to generation.”