DODIK: VISIT TO ISRAEL CONFIRMS GOOD COOPERATION AND FRIENDSHIP

BIJELJINA, JANUARY 24 /SRNA/ – SNSD Leader Milorad Dodik says that his visit to Israel, during which he will meet with top Israeli officials, will be another confirmation of the good cooperation and friendship between Republika Srpska and the State of Israel.

"At the invitation of the Israeli Ministry for Diaspora, on Monday, January 26, I will attend a conference dedicated to the fight against anti-Semitism, and I will also meet many people from the Jewish and democratic world who will participate in this conference," Dodik said.

Dodik states that on Thursday, January 29, he will be awarded a prize for the cooperation achieved by the Israeli parliament.

He emphasized that Republika Srpska deeply understands that a terrible crime was committed in Israel on October 7, 2023, when members of the terrorist organisation Hamas killed 1,400 Israeli citizens, and he believes that Israel had the right to defend its people and territory.

"In that respect, our policy is unchanged, although we are aware that we live in an environment where official Sarajevo is fully anti-Jewish, which has been shown through numerous incidents in the past - from banning a conference of European rabbis, via stoning Jewish tourists, to the latest posters in Sarajevo depicting arrest warrant for Prime Minister Netanyahu," Dodik said.

He also noted that the Israeli Embassy was not allowed to screen a documentary film in Sarajevo about the events of October 7, 2023, but that it was ensured that the film would be shown in Istočno Sarajevo.

"All of this indicates that we consistently, without hesitation, fully understand what is happening. Of course, one should always mourn innocent victims, but the terrorist organization Hamas tried to use the local population as a shield," Dodik said

He says he is glad that the conflict has ended, adding that gratitude for this goes to the State of Israel, but significantly and decisively to U.S. President Donald Trump.

"Trump’s initiative to form a Gaza Peace Board indicates that his intention is to do everything possible to address the consequences of the conflict as quickly as possible and ensure the normalization of life," Dodik said.

He stressed that Israel as a state has fought for many years and decades for its survival and defends the right of a people to self-determination.

"Israel does not deny the fact that Palestinians and the Palestinian Authority are there. Israel previously accepted discussions about forming a state for Palestinians in that area, but the issue of territorial delimitation remained unresolved. Therefore, there are many parallels and points of contact with our people," Dodik said.

He recalled that the Serb people suffered in the same way as the Jewish people during World War II - in camps, execution sites, and pits.

"Suffering occurred in almost every Serb-piulated village, where the Ustaše killed Serbs and committed genocide against the Serb people. Only the Nazis could have done that. That tragic suffering connected the Serb and Jewish peoples," Dodik said.

He stressed that on the other side, the Jewish state is fighting for its sovereignty, while Republika Srpska is doing the same.

"In nearly identical circumstances, we also have a problem with political Islam, which increasingly appears militant. In conditions where Sarajevo could count on the liberal West, which from the beginning blamed the Serbs, claiming that we were the ones who did something wrong," Dodik said.

Hey, Dodik reminded, supported Alija Izetbegović some time ago, who wrote the "Islamic Declaration" and called for the break-up of Yugoslavia.