In a significant statement, Israel ambassador Reuven Azar has said that his country supports India's right of self-defence in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack. Speaking to WION's Sidhant Sibal, he said, "We support India's right of self-defence. India knows what to do. It is a matter of sovereignty. Countries have the right to take self-defence." 

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Last week's terror attack killed 26 people, including one Nepal national in what is the worst attack India has seen since the Pulwama terror attack. Israel was quick to extend condolences over the terror attack. 

Asked about Pakistan's proposal to have an independent probe, the ambassador said, "This is a cynical game. On the one hand, you harbour terrorists, you can't be the cause of conflict, and ask for an investigation, to present yourself as saint." 

In the past, after the Mumbai 26/11 terror attacks, when India gave evidence to Pakistan and Pathankot terror attack, when Pakistan investigation teams were part of the probe, no headway was made by Islamabad and Rawalpindi. The Ambassador Reuven Azar, spoke about overall cooperation with India and how terror organisations "inspire" each other, pointing to the Hamas terror attack in October 2023 in Israel.

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Sidhant Sibal: What were your first reactions, when the information came on the Pahalgam terror attack?
Reuven Azar: It was a terrible sense of shock, you know, because of the nature of the attack, the fact that people were shot in the head, the fact that people were religiously selected. Fact that civilians were targeted, people on vacation, people on honeymoon. This reminds you exactly what happened on the seventh of October in Israel. People going to the music festival, people sleeping in their homes, in their beds, 6.30 am in the morning when these terrorists came and slaughtered them and raped them and burned them. So the sense is that we are suffering from the same phenomena.

Sidhant Sibal: You met Indian EAM Jaishankar, and the support given by the Israeli side to the Indian?
Reuven Azar: In addition to the condolences, are offered to stand in service to the Indian government in whatever they need, because this is a time of need, this is a time of crisis. India does have whatever it needs. But you know, we have cooperation in the broader sense, that is not connected to this incident or the other incident. And we're, of course, ready to expand cooperation in any of the fields that we already have, whether it be intelligence, whether it be methodology, technologies, we benefit from each other.  I think you know the symbolic part, what was important, the fact that we wanted to project this sense that we understand what is happening to you. We want to stand with you in this difficult moment.

Sidhant Sibal: What kind of cooperation can be looked at by both sides? What can Israel offer to India in the aftermath of this terror attack. 
Reuven Azar: There are similarities and there are differences. India, for example, has to deal with a very large territory, and sometimes it's good for us to understand how India operates when you have a very large landscape, or when you are operating in very harsh climatic conditions. This is something that we don't have much knowledge of. On the other hand, you know, there are some other things that are happening in Israel that are not happening here so far, like, you know, tunneling, or different kinds of threats that we can sort of look at and learn as much as is needed. Because, you know, you can never know what will happen in the future. The fact that some of these terrorists operate under the influence of drugs. You know, how do you deal with that? There are so many issues that you can tackle when you have to deal with a phenomenon like that. So naturally, you know those who are in charge, they are doing it. They don't need our blessing, because this relationship is an intimate relationship and they don't need the consent of one another in order to start talking with each other only when terrorist attacks happen. This is something that is happening on a day-to-day basis.

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Sidhant Sibal: Do you think that there is some kind of cooperation between terror organizations globally? We saw Hamas present recently in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, perhaps something that was duly noted here in India and in Israel as well. Do you think there is any connection between terror organisations in your part of the world and the terrorists who were responsible for the Pahalgam terror attack?
Reuven Azar: There are different kinds of cooperation and coordination, and we have to differentiate between them. Not everything has to do with a certain function, the fact that organizations inspire each other. They lean on each other, also rhetorically and religiously speaking, when they promote this radical agenda, when they train each other. For example, we saw in our region in West Asia, how Hezbollah was training militias in Iraq, how it was fighting in Syria and cooperating with Hamas. So there are sometimes production cooperation. There are many kinds of cooperation. It varies from place to place. But what is most worrying, from my perspective, is the inspirational aspect, because our concern, and this is what we share with our Indian friends and with others around the world, is that the fact that Hamas was boasting about these atrocities they did on the seventh of October. They were boasting not just for their supporters to celebrate, but also to instill fear and awe in the hearts of the victims and the hearts of their enemies. This is what is worrying, because we have a situation in which the nature of the crimes is becoming more and more grave. As much as these terrorists feel more desperate or more radical, they adopt tactics that are deplorable, and it's only getting worse. So we've seen the terrible attacks in Mumbai that targeted different people, but I don't remember the people asking, what is your religion? You know, this is something that we have to tackle seriously. It's not just a matter of dealing with this incident or the other incident. This is an international problem, and cooperation doesn't have to do only with dealing with a specific threat, but also dealing with all the aspects of promotion of that tactic, whether it be de-radicalization by blocking channels or punishing those who are selling technologies and platforms to the terrorists. I saw that the Indian government bans several YouTube channels. There is much we can do. There are international companies that are giving services or that these terrorists are using the platforms in order to spread their heinous ideology. We have to deal with that. There are many things that the international community can do when it comes to punishing those who sponsor terrorists when there's evidence about such a thing. We've seen in the case of Syria, the case of Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, that several countries in the world have been not only designating terrorist organizations, but also punishing the governments who are harboring them, who are financing them. So I think that there is much to do in that context. And unfortunately, we haven't seen this coming from the UN. We have seen it coming from like-minded countries. And we have to work with like-minded countries in order to promote that, in order to really give the sense to those who harbour terrorists, that there is a dear price to pay for that kind of crime.

Sidhant Sibal: You've said that India should take action against terrorists, and India is taking now, if tomorrow, India goes after these terrorists and the governments who are supporting it, in this case, India says it's Pakistan. Will Israel support India?
Reuven Azar: Look, we support the right of self-defence of India. The right of self-defence is enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. There is something very basic. We are not giving advice to India or any other country, for that matter, of what measures they should take. This is a matter of sovereignty. It's a matter the countries are responsible for and following this terrible attack, of course, countries have the right to take action. 

Sidhant Sibal: So, you will support India's right to self defense
Reuven Azar: We are supporting India's right to self-defence

Sidhant Sibal: India has already taken a slew of diplomatic actions. What's your assessment?
Reuven Azar: India knows best what to do, because you live in this area, you have this relationship, unfortunate relationship, with your neighbour, and we are not in a position to give advice. We are following that with concern. We are ready to give our support in general terms when it comes to cooperation to deal with terrorism. And as I said, we support India's right to self-defence. 

Sidhant Sibal: India has made it clear. India has briefed Delhi's diplomatic community, world leaders that Pakistan was responsible for the terror attack. Now, Pakistan, on its part, has also come up with statements saying that they want a transparent probe in this. So what will be your reaction to this?
Reuven Azar:  We have to be very careful in how we see these things, because this is a very, very cynical game. If on the one hand you harbor terrorists and then you say you want an investigation, what does it mean? You cannot, on the one hand, be a cause for creating a conflict and on the other hand, asking for investigation in order to present yourself as saint. You know it doesn't work, especially that in the past, we've seen such investigations ending up with nothing. So, this is, I think, is a very clear sign of pressure, fact that, indeed, I think those who are harbouring terrorists need to are losing legitimacy, and I think that we shouldn't be hastened to buy into this, cynical proposal.

Sidhant Sibal: So Israel has a history of experience in counter-terrorism. What can India learn, perhaps, from that and apply in this particular case?
Reuven Azar: As I said, we are learning from each other all the time and this particular case is a case that I don't know all the details about. I'm sure that authorities investigating it will be capable of drawing the right conclusions, and I hope, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, that perpetrators will be brought to justice.

Sidhant Sibal: How do you see this particular terror attack as perhaps a watershed moment for this entire region? Because the terror attack by Hamas was a watershed moment for the entire region in your part of the world. How do you see it playing out in this part of the world?
Reuven Azar: My sense of calling it watershed came from the nature of this terrorist attack. The fact that they targeted vacationers, targeted civilians that were coming to you know, have fun, enjoy nature. They were trying to instill a fear that we would get people out of that area. You know, that, and the nature of the atrocities is such that, it's very difficult to turn the page. You saw it in the way that the Indian government reacted. It was very natural and as I said, I hope that this incident will not repeat itself and will be a moment in time in which the international community will gather in a more effective way, to fight those who sponsor them, to cooperate in a more efficient way. Because many countries are looking at it as if it's something that belongs to a conflict they don't belong to, or they think it's a law enforcement issue. We are seeing, especially following the seventh of October, that this is becoming a pattern around the world that people, in the name of religion, they are going and killing innocent civilians all over the world, whether it be here in Israel, in Europe, in the United States and many other countries in the world, and we have to do something together to stop it.