JERUSALEM (JTA) — President Donald Trump congratulated Benjamin Netanyahu on becoming the longest serving prime minister in Israeli history.
“Congratulations to Bibi@netanyahu on becoming the longest serving PM in the history of Israel. Under your leadership, Israel has become a technology powerhouse and a world class economy…,” Trump tweeted on Sunday, a day after Netanyahu reached the milestone by surpassing David Ben-Gurion’s total of 4,875 days in office.
“….Most importantly you have led Israel with a commitment to the values of democracy, freedom, and equal opportunity that both our nations cherish and share!” a follow-up tweet read.
Netanyahu thanked Trump in a tweet an hour later, which also lauded the relationship between the United States and Israel: “Thank you, President Trump, for your warm words, outstanding support & incredible friendship. I’m honored to have the opportunity to work with you. Under your leadership, we’ve made the alliance between our two remarkable countries stronger than ever. I know there’s more to come.”
On Saturday, Netanyahu served 4,876 days from 1996 to 1999, and from March 2009 to the present. He faces a new election on Sept. 17 and possible indictment in three different corruption cases the following month.
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