- Netanyahu defended himself after Trump lashed out at him for congratulating Biden over his 2020 win.
- “Fuck him,” Trump said of Netanyahu, once a close ally of his, in an interview with Axios released on Friday.
- Netanyahu said that congratulating Biden was important to US-Israel relations.
Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday defended himself after former President Donald Trump attacked the former Israeli prime minister for congratulating President Joe Biden over his 2020 election victory.
“I highly appreciate President Trump’s big contribution to Israel and its security. I also appreciate the importance of the strong alliance between Israel and the U.S. and therefore it was important for me to congratulate the incoming President,” Netanyahu said, per Axios.
In an April interview that was first reported on Friday, Trump told Barak Ravid of Axios in that he hasn’t spoken to Netanyahu since he extended congratulations to Biden back in November 2020, adding, “Fuck him.”
“The first person that congratulated [Biden] was Bibi Netanyahu, the man that I did more for than any other person I dealt with,” Trump said. “Bibi could have stayed quiet. He has made a terrible mistake.” Bibi is Netanyahu’s nickname.
Trump was particularly incensed that Netanyahu congratulated Biden via video. “I liked Bibi. I still like Bibi. But I also like loyalty. The first person to congratulate Biden was Bibi. And not only did he congratulate him, he did it on tape,” Trump said.
Read the article by John Haltiwanger in Business Insider Australia.