Donald Trump gave Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s incumbent prime minister, his backing on Truth Social on Sunday, nine days before Israel’s parliamentary election on October 27. Trump offered Netanyahu his ‘Complete and Total Endorsement’, calling him a ‘great warrior prime minister’ and a peace partner.
Trump also praised Netanyahu as a US ally in the war on Iran. He wrote that Netanyahu ‘has been Strong, Brave, and Brilliant in the face of tremendous opposition, including that coming from even Israel, itself’. In another post, Trump wrote: ‘BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!’
Netanyahu answered on social media: ‘Together we will complete the mission!’
The endorsement is a shift from earlier this month, when Trump declined to back Netanyahu during repeated questioning about the Israeli leader’s performance in an interview with Time magazine. The reason for Trump’s change of position is unknown.
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The two leaders jointly launched the war against Iran on February 28. They have met more than a half dozen times since January 2025, although their relationship has also been tested by Netanyahu’s operations in Lebanon.
In June, Trump acknowledged calling Netanyahu ‘f***ing crazy’ during a phone conversation in which he expressed frustration at Israel’s attacks on Lebanon. Trump had reportedly asked Netanyahu to refrain from further action in Lebanon as he sought to preserve a short-lived April ceasefire with Iran.
The Iran conflict is now in its seventh month. It has disrupted energy markets globally and wreaked havoc across the Middle East. Israeli public support for Trump has diminished amid disagreements between Israel and the US over Iran. A Pew Research Center poll this month found that roughly two-thirds of US voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the war.
Netanyahu’s Likud Party and its far-right coalition now face the prospect of defeat by an opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot, the head of the Yashar party. Polls have suggested that no candidate has a clear path to power.
Israel’s prime minister is selected through coalition-building in parliament rather than a direct popular vote. The October contest will be Israel’s first election since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.
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