Netanyahu calls Donald Trump ‘'rue Friend' of Israel, Israeli Politicians offer Congratulations
November 9, 2016 5:31am
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Donald Trump on his presidential victory, calling him a “true friend of the State of Israel.”
“I look forward to working with him to advance security, stability and peace in our region,” Netanyahu said in his statement in which he declared, “The ironclad bond between the United States and Israel is rooted in shared values, buttressed by shared interests and driven by a shared destiny.
“I am confident that President-elect Trump and I will continue to strengthen the unique alliance between our two countries and bring it to ever greater heights.”
Opposition leader Isaac Herzog, head of the opposition Zionist Union camp, offered his congratulations in a post on Facebook.
“American democracy today elected a leader who surprised the pundits, and showed that we are in an era of change and new direction. You did the unexpected, against all odds,” Herzog wrote.
“I am convinced that the security and economic alliance between Israel, and our strongest ally the United States, will continue to strengthen under your presidency.”
Zionist Union lawmaker Tzipi Livni sent Trump her congratulations on Twitter, but indirectly criticized him for his rhetoric during the campaign.
“I hope for the US and the world that he actualizes the promises of his acceptance speech, not the campaign,” she wrote.
Congratulations @realDonaldTrump. I hope for the US and the world that he actualize the promises of his acceptance speech, not the campaign
— ציפי לבני (@Tzipi_Livni) November 9, 2016
Likud lawmaker and Temple Mount activist Yehuda Glick congratulated Trump and invited him to “ascend the Temple Mount and lead from the source of light and energy a dialogue of world reconciliation and peace.”
Glick also invited Trump to “visit Israel and Judea and Samaria to see for himself, as he claimed, that settlement is the way to peace,” in reference to the West Bank.
“It appears that the American people are tired of hypocrisy and political correctness and prefer straight talk,” Glick also said.
In his congratulations to Trump, Education Minister Naftali Bennett, head of the right-wing Jewish Home party, claimed “The era of a Palestinian state is over.”
Bennett said in a statement: “Trump’s victory is an opportunity for Israel to immediately retract the notion of a Palestinian state in the center of the country, which would hurt our security and just cause. This is the position of the president-elect, as written in his platform, and it should be our policy, plain and simple.”
He said that Israel is “sure the special relationship between the United States and Israel will continue, and even grow stronger.”
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat in a congratulatory letter sent to Trump reminded the president-elect of his promise to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, something his three predecessors have failed to do since the passage of the Jerusalem Act in 1995.
“I am confident that you will continue to empower our city by reaffirming its sovereignty and moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem,” Barkat said in the letter posted on Twitter, calling Trump a “dedicated friend of Jerusalem.”
Mazal tov from #Jerusalem, Mr. President! @realDonaldTrump #ElectionDay pic.twitter.com/L05W8HFNnd
— Mayor Nir Barkat (@NirBarkat) November 9, 2016
Prior to the election, Netanyahu reportedly ordered his Cabinet members not to comment publicly on the U.S. presidential election.
