NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) -- Iran may be threatening Israel with retaliation for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on its soil last month, but Israel's armed forces are prepared as are its tough-as-nail citizens, Israel's Consul General in New York, Ofir Akunis, told 1010 WINS/WCBS Wednesday, as the world increasingly awaits a next move from the Islamic Republic.
"We know how to defend our people," said Akunis, who assumed his posting in the spring. "We'll not let Iran threaten our citizens. And by the way, it's not only against Israel: I just saw that the Iranians actually sent a message to the United States to stay out of it. So the threat is not only against Israel; it's against the United States, United Kingdom, and actually the Western World."
As Israel wages a war against U.S.-designated terror group Hamas, following its Oct. 7 massacre in Israel -- during which it killed about 1,200 people and kidnapped about 250 to Gaza; 115 hostages remain but it is unclear how many are alive, according to Israeli officials -- Akunis said Israel is ready to fight Iran and its proxies on several fronts, whether they're located in Lebanon, Iran, or Yemen.
"We have the technologies, and we have the courage, and we have the power to defeat all our enemies," said Akunis. "We will finish this war only after we defeat them in the Gaza Strip ... And of course we want to see all of the hostages back home with their families."
While Hamas on Tuesday said it would not participate in hostage and ceasefire talks to take place later this week in Qatar, Akunis said, "they want a ceasefire because they know that we are very close actually to a very impressive victory over them in the Gaza Strip."
Consul General Akunis also spoke to 1010 WINS/WCBS 880 about these local and U.S.-based stories; excerpts from the complete interview above are below:
1. Akunis spoke with Michel Dobruskin, the Jewish man who was stabbed in the chest Aug. 10 in Crown Heights. The suspect, Vincent Sumpter, allegedly shouted "Free Palestine ... you want to die today?" He has been charged with attempted murder as a hate crime.
Akunis said vocal rhetoric and similar attacks fuel some people and give them the impression that the aforementioned anti-Jewish crimes are acceptable behavior. "They can hear the screams, and they think to themselves, "okay, if so, I can do whatever I want and I can stop this Jew."
"And I will continue to say again and again and again: my fellow Americans, you must actually say to these people, to these groups, 'That's it. Enough is enough.' If you want to protest, you can protest. It's of course a fundamental idea of the American constitution, the freedom of speech, but the freedom of speech is not to let the other attack you in the name of the freedom of speech. And that's what happened lately in Brooklyn. And I hope that it'll be actually the last one."
2. Columbia University, the site earlier this year of anti-Israel encampments and a takeover of a campus building by pro-Palestinian protesters leading to mass arrests, begins classes Sept. 3. ID is now required to access the campus, and there are only 5 entry points to the main campus. "This change is intended to keep our community safe given reports of potential disruption," said Columbia chief operating officer Cas Holloway.
Akunis said next week at the consulate he'll meet with representatives from Jewish organizations "to see what we can do to defend our students, the Israeli students and the Jewish students. That's the first thing."
He added, "But I think that the police must enforce the law. The police must be much, much stronger. If there is violence and there are threats against Israeli and Jewish students, the police must be there and enforce the law. That's it. It's not so complicated."
3. Nassau County executive Bruce Blakeman on Wednesday signed a mask ban -- the Mask Transparency Act -- which makes it it illegal to wear a mask "for the purposes of concealing an individual's identity in public places," as well as wearing a mask on private property without the consent of the owner or tenant. The misdemeanor charge carries a $1,000 fine, up to a year in jail, or both. It's the first such ban in the U.S. Calls for such a ban have emerged following pro-Palestinian demonstrations, in which the majority of protesters cover their faces. Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul have called for similar restrictions on the subway and elsewhere.
"I'm so very glad to hear -- it's good news. We deserve good news," Akunis said. "I hope that other counties and other places actually will continue and actually will do this very basic thing. It's a very fundamental thing to do. Because they are using the masks actually to attack people ... It wasn't only on the subway ... It's around the campuses, they are bringing their masks ... They're using the mask actually to hide. They're cowards."
4. Incumbent Connecticut state legislator Anabel Figueroa, on Tuesday lost the Democratic primary in the state's 148th District, which includes Stamford, to Jonathan Jacobson, who is Jewish, after she posted a video in Spanish, saying, "The Hispanic vote is going to determine on Aug. 13 who will win to represent or who will continue to represent you. We cannot permit a person who is of Jewish origin, of Jewish origin, to represent our community. It’s impossible." Jacobson won 63% of the vote, while Figueroa won 37% of the vote.
"First of all, I think it's a shame," Akunis said. "Shame on her to say such a thing ... I consider it like a hate crime. It's a hate crime. It's unacceptable."
5. Anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian activists have taken to social media to encourage a boycott of Disney's "Snow White" -- starring Israeli-born Gal Gadot as the evil queen and Rachel Zegler as Snow White -- which opens next spring. And boycott proponents have been given a boost to their cause with Zegler promoting the film on social media with a "Free Palestine" tag.
Akunis said, questioning Hackensack, New Jersey-born Zegler's knowledge of the situation in the Middle East, "Did she know something about what happened now in Israel and in the Middle East? She know something about the Iranian threat? She know something about Hezbollah? She know something about Hamas? She know something about radical Islam? I can't stand it. It's ridiculous. It's shame on her, really."
Akunis said of 23-year-old Zegler, whose first acting role was when she was 12 and played Shprintze in a production of "Fiddler on the Roof," "and if she wants to boycott Israel, if she wants to boycott the Jewish culture, if she wants to boycott the Israeli culture, it's unbelievable. It's ridiculous."
So Akunis has a call-to-action to combat Gadot's detractors: "I'm calling from here to all American citizens to buy tickets to the next Gal Gadot movie. I'll do it."