Former defense minister and IDF chief of staff Moshe Ya’alon apologized after being slammed by left-wing politicians for saying that Arab Israelis would have slaughtered Jews if they weren’t stopped by the strong Jewish state.

“Had we not been strong, there wouldn’t be a Jewish state here,” Ya’alon told Kan News during an interview, adding that he “has no doubt that the Arabs would have slaughtered Jews if the state had shown any weakness toward them.”

Joint List MK Ahmad Tibi denounced Ya’alon’s statements as incitement and Ya’alon apologized “if my remarks weren’t understood properly.”

“During the interview I emphasized the importance of integrating Arab Israelis in Israeli society, and the vast majority of them want that,” Ya’alon elaborated. “I clarified that the government must work to integrate them.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)