Trump backs Netanyahu nine days before Israel election

U.S. President Donald Trump backed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, nine days before Israel’s Oct. 27 election, in a Times of India article citing an Axios phone interview.

The intervention matters because most polls cited by the article put Netanyahu’s coalition below the 61 seats needed to form a government, making outside support politically salient before the vote.

Trump told Axios he had intended to endorse Netanyahu but delayed the timing. “I was always going to do that. I just didn't want to do it too soon,” Trump said, according to the article.

In a Truth Social post cited by the report, Trump called Netanyahu a “Great Warrior Prime Minister” and linked his support to Israel’s confrontation with Iran. The article said Trump warned that a different Israeli leader could leave Washington handling Iran-related work itself.

The endorsement also marks a change in tone from earlier friction between the two leaders, according to the report. Times of India, citing Axios, said Trump had privately criticised Netanyahu over Israel’s failure to prevent the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks and questioned whether Netanyahu was damaging Israel’s international standing.

Netanyahu welcomed Trump’s support on X, writing, “Together we will complete the mission.” His main rival, Gadi Eisenkot, said Israel’s election was an internal matter and that Israeli citizens would determine the result.

The next test is Israel’s Oct. 27 election and whether Netanyahu’s bloc can reach the 61-seat threshold required to form a government.

Source: news article, Times of India, Oct. 19, 2026