Prime Minister Netanyahu takes off to Washington

Israeli Prime Minister Banjamin Netanyahu took off early this morning (Israel Time) to Washington where he will meet with U.S. president Donald Trump as the first leader to meet the president since his return to the White House.

Before boarding his plane the prime minister said: “The fact that this would be President Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his inauguration is telling.

That friendship and that cooperation has already yielded important results for Israel and the Middle East, including the historic Abraham Accords that President Trump led and which brought four historic peace treaties between Israel and its Arab neighbors.

The Prime Minister added “In this meeting we’ll deal with important issues, critical issues facing Israel and our region: victory over Hamas, achieving the release of all our hostages and dealing with the Iranian terror axis in all its components—an axis that threatens the peace of Israel, the Middle East and the entire world”.

Israeli prime minister also discussed possible normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia and said: “I believe that we can strengthen security, broaden the circle of peace and achieve a remarkable era of peace through strength”.

Netanyahu is expected to meet President Trump twice on Tuesday , first for breakfast in the White House and then an official meeting in the oval office following by a press conference later in the afternoon. The Prime Minister will be returning to Israel next Sunday