PM Netanyahu’s remarks at the start of the Government meeting – 19 October 2025

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today (Sunday, 19 October 2025), at the start of the Government meeting [translated from Hebrew]:

“Today, I am submitting for Government approval the proposal to give the war a permanent official name: ‘The War of Redemption’. At the end of two years of continuous fighting, we remember how we started. We rose up from the terrible disaster of October 7.

We rose up dynamically on our feet and returned intensive war to our enemies. We removed the existential threat of the Iranian axis from us. We established the national redemption project in the Land of Israel, in our strong and flourishing state. During ‘Operation Rising Lion’ against Iran, I emphasized the exalted destiny rooted in our heritage: ‘The people will rise up like a lion.’ [Numbers 23;24] This holds true for the entire campaign: This is the War of Redemption of our people, as a direct continuation of the War of Independence.

We are also about to award medals of valor and citations to our brave soldiers and commanders. As in previous military campaigns, the decorations for the current campaign will bear the official name of the War of Redemption.”