The Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met earlier today with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.

During the meeting, the Prime Minister expressed his disgust and anguish at Hamas’ terrorist attacks against Israel.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis underlined tIsrael’s right to self-defense under International Law.

He repeated her need to protect civilians, free Israelis held hostage by Hamas and avoid a humanitarian crisis.

Followed by Prime Minister’s dialogue with Mr. Netanyahu at the start of their meeting (unofficial translation from English):

Benjamin Netanyahu: Mr. Prime Minister, my dear friend Kyriakos, I am very glad to see you here. I always say that the best thing besides standing with Israel is being in Israel. In Israel, as you do. I appreciate your solidarity, your government and the Greek people, in this dark hour. It is a battle of civilization against barbarism. We are on the side of civilization and we must all unite against Hamas, which is the Islamic State (ISIS).

Kyriakos Mitsotakis: Thank you very much, Mr. Prime Minister, dear Bibi. I come here not only as an ally, but as a true friend. What happened was truly horrific. From the first moment, Greece defended and supported Israel’s right to self-defenseaccording to International Law. We made a very clear distinction between Hamas and the Palestinian people. We will continue to support you and hope that whatever happens must happen without great humanitarian cost. You can count on our support, our help.

Benjamin Netanyahu: Thank you my friend. Thank you.