Netanyahu says Europe has ‘much to learn’ from Israel on ‘good and evil’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Europe has “much to learn” from Israel, accusing the continent of suffering from “deep moral weakness.”

Speaking during Israel’s official Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony, Netanyahu said Europe had forgotten the distinction between “good and evil.”

“Europe today is afflicted by deep moral weakness,” he said. “It has much to learn from us, especially the essential lesson of the clear moral distinction between good and evil.”

Netanyahu said moments such as the current one require “going to war for the sake of what’s good, for the sake of life.”

He also claimed Europe is losing its ability to defend “its identity and values” and that Israel is defending Europe and “civilization against barbarism.”

Netanyahu’s remarks came amid growing criticism in Europe over Israel’s policies in the occupied West Bank and Lebanon.

Earlier on Monday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed “deep concern” over developments in the Palestinian territories and warned against what he described as a “de facto partial annexation” of the occupied West Bank.

Merz also urged Netanyahu during a phone call to begin direct peace talks with Lebanon and called for an end to hostilities in southern Lebanon.

Netanyahu’s already faces mounting legal pressure. His corruption trial, which began in 2020, remains ongoing. Netanyahu denies the charges and has described them as a “political campaign aimed at toppling” him.

He is also wanted by the International Criminal Court since 2024 on accusations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.