"Israel will always have Canada as a friend in the world," Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Sunday at an annual gala dinner of KKL-JNF in Toronto attended by some 4,000 guests.
KKL-JNF is Israel's largest green NGO.
Harper, a staunch supporter of Israel, also announced that he plans to visit Israel at the beginning of next year. This will mark his first visit ever to the Jewish state.
“This official trip is an important indicator of the dynamic relationship that exists between two great countries, which has grown and strengthened under the prime minister’s leadership. This visit will provide Israelis with an opportunity to thank the prime minister for his steadfast friendship and support over many years, ” said David Koschitzky, the chairman of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA).
Harper was honored at the annual dinner in light of the construction of a new visitor center in the Hula Valley, in northern Israel, to be named after the Canadian Prime Minister.
The new project includes the establishment of an international bird sanctuary visitor and education center, as part of the Hula Valley Rehabilitation Plan. The Stephen J. Harper Hula Valley Bird Sanctuary Visitor and Education Centre will be located will be a 4,000 square meter construction and will serve as a scientific and educational facility. During Harper's upcoming trip to Israel he will visit the project.
"The project will bring jobs to the region. It will be an epicentre for environmentalists, for birders from all over the world, to learn and study birds together in Israel," said Josh Cooper, head of KKL-JNF's Canadian branch.
“I am honored by this particular gift. value it because it is where it is. It is in that homeland of the Jewish people and that light of freedom and democracy in what is otherwise a region of darkness — the State of Israel,” Harper said in his speech.
“These are dark days,” the Prime Minister added, explaining that Ottawa and Jerusalem share common values but also common threats.
“In the world of diplomacy, we know how easy it is to drift away from Israel. We understand that the future of our country and of our shared civilization depends on the survival and the thriving of that free and democratic homeland of the Jewish people in the Middle East.”
In a televised video message from Jerusalem, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lauded his Canadian counterpart as a "true leader." "Stephen doesn't follow the herd," he said. "He has stood up for the truth, time and time again."
"Stephen doesn't want to be politically correct, he wants to be correct. He had the courage to stand up for what he believed," Netanyahu said.
According to The Jerusalem Post, some 150 pro-Palestinian activists gathered in front of the Toronto Convention Center to protest Harper’s appearance at the gala dinner, carrying signs condemning Israel’s “policy of apartheid” as well as the JNF’s land policies in the Negev.
Police on horseback were deployed in order to keep the peace.
JNF organizers slammed the protests as attempts to “delegitimize” Israel.
JNF-KKL chairman Efi Stenzler described Harper's central role in the evening as an unprecedented display of support for the state of Israel and KKL-JNF which he said, puts into proportion the demonstrations of hate and lies that preceded the event. "KKL-JNF and its supporters all over the world will continue to strengthen the state of Israel with all its strength and will act fearlessly to reinforce it," he said.