Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed the decision of the US Presbyterian Church to divest from three companies that provide supplies to the IDF and residents of Judea and Samaria.

Dubbing the recent vote “disgraceful,” Netanyahu told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that “most Americans understand that Israel is a beacon of civilization and moderation.”

The prime minister explained that while majority of the Middle East was “riveted by religious hatred, by savagery of unimaginable proportions,” Israel is “the one democracy that upholds basic human rights, that guards the rights of all minorities, that protects Christians.”

Netanyahu challenged Presbyterians to “fly to the Middle East, come and see Israel for the embattled democracy that it is, and then take a bus tour, go to Libya, go to Syria, go to Iraq, and see the difference.”

“I would give them two pieces of advice – one is make sure it’s an armor-plated bus, and second, don’t say that you’re a Christian.”

Speaking at an international gathering of Jewish journalists on Sunday, Netanyahu openly wondered why Israel has been singled out by the Presbyterian church.

“When the Middle East is fragmented in this horrible war, this savage, savage war between militant Shiites and militant Sunnis…the only place where you have freedom, tolerance, protection of minorities, protection of gays, protection of Christians and all other faiths, is Israel.”

Presbyterian Church USA voted on Friday at its annual general assembly to divest from Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard and Motorola Solutions in support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel.

According to a statement released by the church, Caterpillar provides Israel with bulldozers “used in the destruction of Palestinian homes.”

Hewlett-Packard “provides electronic systems at checkpoints, logistics and communications systems to support the naval blockade of the Gaza Strip, and has business relationships with illegal settlements in the West Bank.”

Motorola Solutions “provides military communications and surveillance systems in the illegal Israeli settlements.”

Dr. Yoaz Hendel, Chairman of The Institute for Zionist Strategies, told Breaking Israel News that Presbyterian USA is “operating on False assumptions.”

“The church voted based on a small part of anti-Semitism and a large part of false information. I want members of the church to come to Israel to see what a strong, democratic, liberal state looks like. Israel is not perfect but to have a biased reality that Israel is evil and everyone else is good – those people do not understand what is really happening in Israel,” he said.

“If people boycott Israel because they think they are going to save and change the world, then they are not in the right place of mind,” Hendel stated. “If one checks and understands what is happening in Israel – the education system, the peace vision, the fact that Israel is based on democratic values – if one understands what is the basic essence of Israel, they would never support any type of BDS against Israel.”

Editor: To read an exclusive response to the recent vote, click here.