Zein Khalil
21 January 2025•Update: 21 January 2025
JERUSALEM
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other government officials congratulated US President Donald Trump on his inauguration, saying they are looking forward to more US support for Israel.
In a statement, Netanyahu recalled that Trump’s first term (2017-2021) "was filled with groundbreaking moments in the history of the great alliance between our two countries."
"I believe that working together again we will raise the US-Israel alliance to even greater heights," he added.
Netanyahu's congratulatory message did not end without pointing to what he said was Iran's threat against Israel, saying he is "confident" that they "will complete the defeat of Iran’s terror axis and usher in a new era of peace and prosperity" for the region.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz also congratulated Trump, stressing that the US-Israel ties are "unbreakable," and appreciating the US support and commitment to his country.
Former defense chief and head of the National Unity Party, Benny Gantz, expected that the US-Israeli alliance will move to new levels during Trump’s term.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said that Trump is the only person capable of bringing home Israeli captives from Gaza.
On Sunday morning, a Gaza ceasefire agreement took effect, suspending Israel’s genocidal war on the Palestinian enclave.
The three-phase ceasefire agreement includes a prisoner exchange and sustained calm, aiming for a permanent truce and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Nearly 47,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 110,700 others injured in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, according to local health authorities.
The Israeli war has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.
In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
* Writing by Ahmed Asmar.
