Gideon Sa’ar and Yehuda Ben Yosef Emphasize the Development of Kurdish–Jewish Relations

Kurdnation: During the International Conference on Kurdish–Jewish Relations in London, Gideon Sa’ar, Israel’s Foreign Minister, emphasized in a video message the historic friendship between Kurds and Jews and the need to strengthen relations between the two peoples.

In part of his remarks, Sa’ar noted that the Kurds are divided among four states and have not yet achieved political independence. He also stated that Israel supports the development of relations between Kurds and Jews.

Meanwhile, Yehuda Ben Yosef, President of the Kurdish Community in Israel, in his speech entitled “Israel and Kurdistan: A Partnership of Past, Present and Future,” emphasized shared interests, historical relations, and the need to expand political and social cooperation between the two peoples.

Ben Yosef said that Israel is one of the countries that has openly supported the aspiration for an independent Kurdistan. He also stressed that Kurdish–Israeli relations should not be built solely on shared threats and common enemies, but should instead be based on history, culture, mutual interests, and long-term cooperation.

The remarks of these two figures demonstrated that, alongside historical and cultural issues, the question of Kurdistan’s independence and the future of Kurdish–Israeli cooperation were also among the important themes of the London conference.