“Historic Dawn of a New Middle East”: Trump Addresses Israeli Parliament as Hostages Come Home
While on a brief but historic four-hour visit, President Donald Trump addressed the Israeli parliament, welcoming the return of hostages and calling for regional peace. “This is not just the end of war, this is the end of the era of terror and death and the beginning of the era of faith and God,” President Trump
said. “This is the beginning of everlasting harmony for Israel and all the nations of what will soon be a great region. I believe in it very much.” “This is the historic dawn of a new Middle East,” he
declared, as Israeli
hostages came home after enduring more than two years of horrific Hamas captivity. President Trump described the diplomatic and military outcome of the war as “a great victory for Israel and the world – a special moment when all nations worked together as a partnership for peace.” During the speech, he received several standing ovations from Israeli lawmakers from both sides of the aisle.
President Trump also gave Prime Minister Netanyahu credit for the Gaza deal. “Thank you very much, Bibi. Great job,” he said. The Israeli prime minister lauded the U.S. president’s contributions in his previous and current terms, saying: “Donald Trump is the greatest friend that Israel has ever had at the White House.”
The Times of Israel published the excerpts of the speech:
US President Donald Trump praises Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “great courage and patriotism” in his address to the Knesset, saying “his partnership did so much to make this day possible.”He asks Netanyahu to stand up as the plenum applauds.“And he’s not easy, I wanna tell you,” says Trump. “He’s not the easiest guy to deal with. But that’s what makes him great.”“Thank you very much, Bibi. Great job,” he says.Trump thanks the Arab and Muslim countries who pressured Hamas to free the hostages it was holding, calling it “an incredible triumph for Israel to have all these nations working together as partners in peace.”“This will be remembered as the moment that everything began to change,” he says. “It will be the golden age of Israel, and the golden age of the Middle East.”
Two lawmakers of the Hadash party, the former Communist party, tried to heckle President Trump during the speech. They were quickly escorted out by the ushers, prompting the president’s praise. Other lawmakers broke out in spontaneous chants of “Trump, Trump.” “That was very efficient,” President Trump
said.
After his speech in Knesset, the president will depart for Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt, where a
Gaza peace plan is expected to be signed. Around 20 heads of state from the Middle East and Western countries will be at the summit
Arriving at the Israeli parliament, President Trump signed the guest book to mark the historic moment,
The Jerusalem Post reported:
US President Donald Trump arrived at the Knesset on Monday morning, ahead of his speech at the plenum.A trumpet fanfare sounded in the Knesset upon his entrance to the building.In the meeting in Netanyahu’s office, Trump wrote in the Knesset’s guest book: “It is a great honor for me – this is a beautiful day, a new beginning. With great respect.”Trump was asked by reporters in the Knesset hallways if the Israel-Hamas war is over. “Yes,” the president emphatically answered.”It’s a great day. A whole new beginning. There’s never been an event like it. It’s a great day,” Trump commented. “I’m so happy for the hostages and their families,” he added.
Earlier in the day, President Trump was received at Ben Gurion airport by Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Netanyahu. “Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greeted Trump on the tarmac as a military band played,” the
Associated Press reported. The crowd at Tel Aviv Hostages Square cheered as it watched the live broadcast of U.S. President Donald Trump alighting Air Force One at Ben Gurion Airport. “In Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, the site of continuous demonstrations during two years of war, the crowd cheered for Trump,” the AP News added.
Indonesian President to visit Israel this week in surprise move
In another major win for President Trump’s diplomatic push to expand the Abraham Accords, Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto is expected to visit Israel in the coming days. Indonesia is home to the largest population of Muslims in the world. “Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto may arrive in Israel this week in what would be a historic first-ever visit by a leader of the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation, which has no formal diplomatic relations with Israel,” the
Israel Hayom newspaper reported. “Subianto, who is attending the Sharm el-Sheikh summit in Egypt alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, reportedly plans to visit Israel afterward.”
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