De Blasio Says He’s a Friend

By COLlive reporter

New York City’s incoming Mayor Bill de Blasio made it very clear on whose side he’s on when speaking about Israel.

He told a full crowd at the New York Hilton in Manhattan last Thursday that “part of my job description is to be a defender of Israel.”

He was speaking at a dinner of the local chapter of AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), the pro Israel lobby in America, attended by political leaders, community activists and supporters of Israel.

Participating from the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn were Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, her community liaison Eli Slavin, Chanina Sperlin and Eli Cohen of the Jewish Community Council and activist Avi Lesches.

De Blasio said the city has a special bond with Israel not only because of its large Jewish population –the largest outside of Israel– but also because of shared values of democracy and open discourse, and the shared experience of confronting terrorism.

“We take inspiration from Israel for how it has stared down terrorism and kept moving forward,” he said, adding that AIPAC would always have “a friend and ally at City Hall.”

He used the opportunity to call on the U.S. administration to boycott the Saudi Arabian Airlines for denying Israeli citizens to fly with their planes. ”I don’t think they belong in our airports,” said de Blasio, noting that it was violating US law.

De Blasio, who succeeded Michael Bloomberg one month ago, recalled his 3 visits to Israel, most recently with his wife Chirlane McCray and son Dante de Blasio.

He said he was especially moved by visiting Sderot, a city in the Negev desert close to the Gaza Strip that has been the target of rocket attacks, according to the New York Times.

“We went to the children’s center in Sderot,” de Blasio said, “and we saw what it meant for everyday families. If they wanted to have time for their kids to play, they have to be in a missileproof, bombproof play area, because you could not know otherwise if your children would be safe.

“You can’t have an experience like that and not feel solidarity with the people of Israel and know that they’re on the front line of fighting against so many challenges,” he added.

AUDIO: The full speech