Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan concluded his four-year tenure at the world body in a ceremony in Manhattan on Monday organized by Israel’s U.N. delegation and the UJA-Federation of New York.

Hundreds attended to honor Erdan, including many ambassadors, heads of Jewish organizations, New York Mayor Eric Adams and Rep. Richie Torres (D-N.Y.).

“Many times I have been asked how I can come to work every day in a place where there is so much hatred and hypocrisy against Israel,” Erdan said. “My answer is simple: It is easy to defend Israel because if you know the truth and believe in it, you hold your head up proudly even in the face of continuous criticism and attacks.”

Added Erdan: “I know the good that I represent—the most moral country in the world, Israel.”

The former Israel Cabinet minister said he did all he could to raise awareness of the horrors perpetrated by Hamas on innocent Israelis on Oct. 7.

Erdan also warned of the continuing danger to Israel of the Islamic Republic, which together with its proxies “are threatening to attack Israel from every direction.”

He leveled criticism at the U.N. for ignoring Tehran’s stated intentions.

“Even today, when Iran openly threatens to ‘punish’ Israel, the U.N. is silent. Iran interprets the silence of the world and the U.N. as giving a green light to attack Israel, which is just like the shameful silence of the world when the Nazis decided at the [1942] Wannsee Conference on the genocide of the Jewish people,” he said.

Addressing the crowd, Adams said, “I thank you for the inspiration you gave me every time we met, every time we stood by each other and every time we fought together.”

Torres said, “Gilad, you have been a warrior for your people in the moment of their greatest need. I join everyone here in saluting the legacy you leave behind.”

Image - Arie Leib Abrams/Flash90