Prime Minister Fiala held talks in Israel with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Herzog

On Wednesday 25 October, Prime Minister Petr Fiala visited Israel. He met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog, to whom he expressed the Czech Republic's unequivocal solidarity with the State of Israel following the brutal attack by the Hamas terrorist movement. Prime Minister Fiala stressed that the Czech Republic stands on Israel's side and is ready to fully support it materially and diplomatically. The Czech Prime Minister also visited a hospital in Tel Aviv, where he met with survivors of the terrorist attacks and with the family of Oran Elfasi, a Czech-Israeli victim of the recent attack.

The aim of the Czech Prime Minister's visit to Tel Aviv was primarily to express unequivocal solidarity with Israel. “7 October was the most tragic for Israel and the Jewish people in decades, the Hamas terror attacks are unspeakably brutal and Israel has every right to defend itself. I assured our friends that the Czech Republic stands by Israel and will stand by it as long as necessary. Our support is tangible. Czech companies immediately supplied Israel with basic military equipment, such as ballistic plates by STV Group. We will discuss further possible assistance to our friends today,” said the Czech Prime Minister.

The Czech Prime Minister was originally supposed to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on 8 October as part of a joint meeting of the governments of both countries, but the day before Palestinian terrorists launched a barbaric attack against Israel and its citizens. The new date of the meeting was deliberately chosen the day before the European Council meeting in Brussels. The situation in the region will be one of the topics of the meeting on Thursday evening.

“In Brussels, I will work to ensure that the Council reaffirms its unequivocal support for Israel and its right to self-defence. Hamas is a terrorist organisation, we must treat it accordingly, we must make sure that no European money is used to support terrorism. Israel is our key ally. It has the right to peace and security and the Czech Republic stands firmly by its side,” added the Prime Minister. The Council will also address how to support efforts to release hostages held by terrorists in Gaza.

After the meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu, the Czech Prime Minister headed to Israeli President Isaac Herzog. “We talked about supporting the Czech Republic. In all places I have encountered a great deal of awareness of the Czech Republic's long-standing support for Israel, both historically and presently, which is very much appreciated by Israelis, especially in these difficult days. I also had the opportunity to speak with representatives of the intelligence services and to obtain more comprehensive information about the situation,” he said.

The Czech Prime Minister then visited a hospital in Tel Aviv, where he had the opportunity to meet with survivors of the terrorist attacks on 7 October 2023. “The brutality of the attacks carried out by Hamas is immense and should make us all aware of the values Israel is fighting for and the danger it is defending itself against. My visit confirms that the Czech Republic has stood unequivocally on the right side in the long term,” added the Prime Minister.

Before flying back to Prague, the Prime Minister personally expressed his condolences to the family of Oran Elfasi, the Czech-Israeli victim of the recent attack.