US President Donald Trump has declared his “complete and total endorsement” of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of elections due in less than 10 days.
In a message posted on his Truth Social platform on Sunday and addressed to the Israeli people, Trump praised Netanyahu as “strong, brave, and brilliant”.
“I have watched Bibi [Netanyahu] under the most trying of times. Normal men or women in such situations would have wilted under the pressure — but Bibi did not wilt. He actually got stronger,” Trump wrote.
“Please let this letter serve to represent my complete and total endorsement of Bibi Netanyahu in his upcoming race for re-election as prime minister of Israel. BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”
Trump said any alternative to Netanyahu would be the wrong choice for Israel.
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He also vowed that the US would “finish the job soon” with Iran unless Tehran changed course. He suggested he would be reluctant to do so without Netanyahu in office.
“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,” he said.
Netanyahu swiftly thanked Trump in a post on X.
“Thank you, President Trump, for your tremendous support and partnership,” he wrote. “Together, we will complete the mission!”
Trump’s endorsement comes as opinion polls point to a deadlock between Netanyahu’s coalition and an opposition bloc led by former army general Gadi Eisenkot.
A Maariv poll published Sunday put both blocs at 51 seats each, well short of the 61 needed for a parliamentary majority.
The projected stalemate has persisted in polls ahead of the election, scheduled for 27 October.
However, Eisenkot holds a clear lead over Netanyahu in a head-to-head contest for prime minister, with 48% support against 41% for the incumbent.
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