US President Donald Trump gave his "complete and total endorsement" to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, just nine days before Israel's Oct. 27 Knesset election.
"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," Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to the campaign against Iran.
Until now, Trump had refrained from endorsing Netanyahu, repeatedly sidestepping reporters' questions on the subject in recent weeks.
Trump described Netanyahu as a "Great Warrior Prime Minister, and an even greater Partner for Peace" in the fight against the Islamic Republic of Iran. He praised the Israeli leader for having been "Strong, Brave, and Brilliant in the face of tremendous opposition, including that coming from even Israel, itself."
"Despite all of that, he has endured and, in fact, he has thrived!" Trump wrote. "Normal men or women in such situations would have wilted under the pressure," he continued. "But Bibi did not wilt, he actually got stronger, and maintains that same Strength today."
Last Tuesday, when asked on the White House lawn whether he would endorse any candidate, Trump initially responded that he had not even thought about it, before adding, "Could be. Maybe I'll do something."
In an interview with Newsmax on Thursday, Trump acknowledged that Israeli officials wanted him to become involved in the election campaign, saying, "Well, they'd like me to be." However, when asked whether he trusted Netanyahu, Trump replied, "I don't trust anybody, honestly. In the world of politics, I don't trust anybody."
The endorsement marks an unusually direct and public intervention by a sitting US president in an Israeli election. Previous American presidents have sought to influence election outcomes in Israel, but generally took care to do so behind the scenes. Trump has publicly endorsed several political leaders with whom he maintains close ties during his second term, including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who lost his country's election in April, Argentine President Javier Milei and Honduran President Nasry Asfura.
