Israel: Trump endorses Netanyahu ahead of elections
US President Donald Trump has announced his "complete and total" endorsement of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of Israel's parliamentary elections on October 27.
Israel will hold parliamentary elections on October 27, with opinion polls suggesting neither Netanyahu nor the opposition will manage to secure the 61 seats needed to form a coalition. Trump posted on his Truth Social account: "Please let this Letter serve to represent my Complete and Total Endorsement of Bibi Netanyahu."
Iran war at center of Trump announcement
According to Trump, Netanyahu is a "Great Warrior Prime Minister," also commending him for his role in the war against Iran. "BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!" Trump added.
If Israel has the wrong Leader, which would be anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this work ourselves, and I am not inclined to do so.
Netanyahu opponent reacts
Gadi Eisenkot, Netanyahu's main challenger, reacted to Trump's endorsement by saying the Israeli public are the only ones who decide who is the country's next leader. Speaking at an event in Tel Aviv, Eisenkot voiced his appreciation of Trump's "large contribution" to Israel's security.
But Israel is a democratic state, he said, adding that the US administration will learn to work with whichever government the public decides on.
Netanyahu boasts Trump friendship
Netanyahu thanked the US leader for his "tremendous support." "Together we will complete the mission," Netanyahu posted on his X account, alluding to the joint campaign by the two countries against Iran. This is not the first time Netanyahu's election campaign has invoked Trump's support to augment the Israeli leader's international status.
In 2019, Netanyahu's Likud party posted billboards showing the Israeli leader shaking hands with Trump during the latter's first term as US president, as well as with Russian President Vladimir Putin, describing Netanyahu as a leader of a "different league."
Election issues
Netanyahu is the longest serving prime minister in Israel's history. Much of Israeli society is divided on his far-right coalition's role in the failure to foresee and prevent the October 7 terrorist attack by Islamist Palestinian group Hamas and its affiliates in Gaza, in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.
Netanyahu has refused to establish a state inquiry with full authority to investigate the attacks. Another point of contention is Israel's war in Gaza that followed the attack, in which some 74,000 Palestinians have been killed. Despite promising "total victory," Hamas still controls parts of Gaza.
Other issues at the center of Israel's elections include the conscription of young ultraorthodox men into the military, the cost of living, and Israel's international status. The elections will determine whether Netanyahu continues his leadership or if Israel's political landscape undergoes significant change.
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