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Benjamin Netanyahu reveals Saudi Arabia broadcast his UN speech in unprecedented move
The Israeli premier hailed his six-day trip to the US, where he also met Joe Biden and Elon Musk, as a great success
September 24, 2023 09:19
1 min read
The Israeli premier hailed his six-day trip to the US, where he also met Joe Biden and Elon Musk, as a great success
September 24, 2023 09:19(JNS) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu departed for Israel this morning, wrapping up a six-day trip to the United States that included a highly anticipated meeting with Joe Biden, an address to the United Nations General Assembly – and a Tesla ride with Elon Musk.
Netanyahu departed New York’s JFK airport in the early hours and is set to touch down in Tel Aviv this afternoon, just after Israel’s airspace officially closes for the Yom Kippur holiday, before the holiday starts at sundown.
“I think this visit brought many achievements, and with your help, and thanks to you, we were able to do lots of good things for the State of Israel,” the premier told fellow members of the Israeli delegation shortly before take-off, noting he had met with around 20 leaders from five continents during the visit.
“I also want to thank many of you for the congratulations [that I received] on the UN speech, which, to my joy, was not only broadcast live on US television networks but also live in Saudi Arabia. This is, of course, a blessing for next year; next year will be a good year for us,” he added.
The premier began the trip - his first to the US since being voted back into office in November – with a meeting on Monday with X/Twitter owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk at the electric vehicle company’s plant in Fremont, California.
On Tuesday morning, Bibi landed in New York to participate in the annual gathering of world leaders at the UN General Assembly, and the next day he met the US president, marking the leaders’ first face-to-face appointment since Netanyahu was re-elected nine months ago.
Their closed-door meeting focused on the Iranian threat, Saudi-Israeli normalisation, the Palestinian issue and Israel’s highly controversial judicial reform push.
Netanyahu also held meetings with Ukraine’s Jewish President Volodymyr Zelensky and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as well as the heads of numerous other states including Turkey, South Korea and Paraguay.
Capping off his week-long visit, Netanyahu addressed the UN General Assembly on Friday with a speech largely focused on ongoing efforts to forge a normalisation agreement between the Jewish state and Saudi Arabia.
A looming peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia will have far-reaching implications, including encouraging other Arab nations to normalize relations with Israel, Netanyahu predicted.
He called the Abraham Accords “a pivot of history,” and said the whole world is reaping their benefits.
“All these are tremendous blessings,” said the premier.
Before returning to Israel, Netanyahu also sat down with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.