President Obama: "Obviously, our hearts go out to those who have been
injured, both Israeli and Palestinian."

Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: Is it "obvious" that Mr. Obama's heart goes out to
Palestinians injured when they are trying to murder Jews?
==================

Statements of US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu on the Sidelines of the UN General Assembly
(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

Following are the statements of US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu, today (Wednesday, 21 September), in New York City, on
the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

Prime Minister Netanyahu:

"First, I want to thank you for the Memorandum of Understanding that we
signed last week. It greatly enhances Israel's security. It fortifies the
principle that you've enunciated many times: that Israel should be able to
defend itself by itself against any threat.

Secondly, I want to thank you for the extensive security and intelligence
cooperation between our two countries. I don’t think people at large
understand the breadth and depth of this cooperation but I know it and I
want to thank you on behalf of all of the people of Israel.

Third, I want to thank you for the many meetings we've had in which we
discussed how to confront common challenges and how to seize common
opportunities. The greatest challenge is of course the unremitting
fanaticism; the greatest opportunity is to advance a durable peace. That's a
goal that I and the people of Israel will never give up on.

We have been fortunate that in pursuing these two tasks Israel has no
greater friend than the United States of America and America has no greater
friend than Israel.

Our alliance has grown decade after decade through successive presidents,
bipartisan Congress and the overwhelming support of the American people.

It's an unbreakable bond based on common values, buttressed by common
interests and bound by a shared destiny. And I want to thank you, Mr.
President, for the opportunity to once again discuss how we can shape that
destiny together.

And I'd like to add if I may one final point. As you conclude your
presidency, I know you are going to be busy with many, many things much more
than improving what I hear is a terrific golf game. Your voice, your
influential voice will be heard for many decades and I know you'll continue
to support Israel's right to defend itself and its right to thrive as a
Jewish state so I want you to know, Barack, that you'll always be a welcome
guest in Israel. And by the way, I don’t play golf but right next to my home
in Caesarea in Israel there's a terrific golf course."

US President Barack Obama:

"We'll set up a tee time."

Prime Minister Netanyahu:

"Thank you."

US President Obama:

"Thank you. Thank you so much.

Well, it’s good to once again welcome Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and
his delegation here. I want to start by just sending a message that all of
the American people, my entire Administration and me personally are thinking
about Shimon Peres, a great friend, a hero and giant in the history of
Israel. And we are hopeful that he will have a speedy recovery.

I've always joked whenever I've seen Shimon that I wanted to see what he ate
and what he did because he's always looked so good. I know this has been a
challenging time for him and his family but I wanted to make sure that I
relay my gratitude to him for his friendship and his leadership, and helping
to forge a strong U.S. - Israeli bond.

As Prime Minister Netanyahu mentioned, the bond between the United States
and Israel is unbreakable. It is based on common values, family ties, a
recognition that a Jewish State of Israel is one of our most important
allies and a guiding principle throughout my presidency, one that I've
expressed often to the Prime Minister is that it is important for America's
national security to ensure that we have a safe and secure Israel, one that
can defend itself.

And so the Memorandum of Understanding that we recently signed I think is
indicative of that. What it does is provide an assurance and a foundation
for the kinds of ongoing military and intelligence cooperation that has been
the hallmark of our relationship. It allows, I think, Israeli planners the
kind of certainty in a moment where there's enormous uncertainty in the
region. It is a very difficult and dangerous time in the Middle East and we
want to make sure that Israel has the full capabilities it needs in order to
keep the Israeli people safe and secure.

This will give us an opportunity to talk about the challenges that arise out
of situations like Syria. I will also be interested in hearing from the
Prime Minister his assessment of conditions within Israel and in the West
Bank. Obviously, our hearts go out to those who have been injured, both
Israeli and Palestinian. Clearly, there is great danger of not just
terrorism but also flare-ups of violence.

We do have concerns around settlement activity as well. And our hope is that
we can continue to be an effective partner with Israel in finding a path to
peace.

Obviously, I'm only going be to be President for another few months. The
Prime Minister will be there quite a bit longer and our hope will be that in
these conversations we get a sense of how Israel sees the next few years,
what the opportunities are and what the challenges are in order to assure
that we keep alive the possibility of a stable, secure Israel at peace with
its neighbors, and a Palestinian homeland that meets the aspirations of
their people.

But obviously these are challenging times. One thing I can say about Prime
Minister Netanyahu is he has always been candid with us and his team has
cooperated very effectively with ours. We very much appreciate it and I
guarantee you that I will visit Israel often because it is a beautiful
country with beautiful people. And Michelle and the girls, I think, resent
that fact that I have not taken them on most of these trips. So they're
insisting that I do take them, of course they will appreciate the fact that
the next time I visit Israel I won’t have to sit in bilats but instead can
enjoy the sights and sounds of a remarkable country.

So thank you very much."

Prime Minister Netanyahu:

"Thank you. Thank you."