By Mardiyyah Abubakar
US President Donald Trump has urged Israelis to vote for Prime Minister Benjamin, Netanyahu in the upcoming election, praising his leadership and role in the conflict with Iran.
Trump made the appeal on Sunday in a post on his Truth Social platform, describing Netanyahu, popularly known as Bibi, as an “outstanding Warrior Prime Minister”.
He cited the US-Israel war against Iran as an example of the two countries “winning together”.
Meanwhile, opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot has pledged to unite Israelis and address divisions within the country as he held his final major campaign rally ahead of Tuesday’s election.
Eisenkot, a former Israeli military chief, promised to prioritise national security, economic stability and efforts to bring the country together.
“Our goal is not for one side to defeat the other. That is not our way,” he told hundreds of supporters on Sunday.
He also promised to work for all Israelis, including those who did not vote for him.
Eisenkot has criticised Netanyahu’s leadership and called for a state commission of inquiry into the failures that preceded Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
The election campaign has focused heavily on security, the war with Iran and the future of the Palestinian territories.
Netanyahu has accused Eisenkot and his allies of supporting the creation of a Palestinian state, describing the prospect as a catastrophe for Israel. Eisenkot, however, has said he opposes a Palestinian state while pledging to take action against extremist settlers who attack Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Netanyahu has also defended his handling of the conflict with Iran, claiming that his government has completed 90 per cent of its objectives against the country’s nuclear programme.
Eisenkot challenged that claim in a post on X, accusing the prime minister of failing to achieve the war objectives he had set.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid, who has pledged to join a coalition with Eisenkot, also criticised Netanyahu’s handling of the security situation and urged voters to remove him from office.
Netanyahu, who has dominated Israeli politics for decades, is also facing corruption charges, which he denies.
Polls published before the pre-election polling blackout showed Netanyahu and Eisenkot running neck and neck ahead of Tuesday’s vote.
