Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked US President Donald Trump for his Wednesday letter to President Isaac Herzog asking for a pardon in the prime minister's trial.
"Thank you, President Trump, for your incredible support. As usual, you get right to the point and call it like it is. I look forward to continuing our partnership to bolster security and expand peace."
In the letter, Trump told Herzog that while he respects "the independence of the Israeli justice system, and its requirements, I believe that this 'case' against Bibi, who has fought alongside me for a long time, including against the very tough adversary of Israel, Iran, is a political, unjustified prosecution."
Israeli politicians, however, had a mixed response to Trump's Wednesday letter.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar (New Hope-United Right) wrote in a statement on X/Twitter that the letter proved the "full absurdity" of Netanyahu's trial.
"This Kafkaesque proceeding has been ongoing for five and a half years, and who knows for how many more. The prosecution, in an utterly inelegant manner, ignored the judges’ recommendation to reconsider the bribery charge," he wrote.
"The continued persecution of the prime minister in his own country is all the more outrageous given that, during wartime, an arrest warrant was issued against him by the body calling itself the 'International Criminal Court' in The Hague. Apparently, this too carries no significance for a prosecution living in a world detached from reality."
Israeli right-wing politicians praise Trump's pardon plea
"Under these circumstances, it is entirely fitting for the president to exercise his authority to grant a pardon and bring an end to this saga, which serves no purpose other than causing harm to the country, to the unity of the people of Israel, and even to the judicial system itself.
This is clearly a matter of public interest."
Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said that the letter proved the "depth of the alliance between Israel and the US.
"We know it’s more complicated; there are legal aspects that need to be considered, but it reflects his appreciation for the prime minister and his desire to focus on expanding the Abraham Accords.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote that the trial had "long since turned into an indictment against the prosecution itself, whose disgrace and wrongdoing are exposed in court every day.
"A pardon in this case is the right and urgent thing to do. President Herzog, listen to President Trump!"
Transportation Minister Miri Regev (Likud) wrote that she hoped that Herzog would respond positively to Trump's letter.
"Every word is spot on, I can only join in," she wrote in a post on X/Twitter. "This rigged trial needs to be stopped."
Israeli Left calls on US to limit intervention in domestic affairs
In contrast, members of Israel's opposition parties slammed Trump's letter. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said that the letter was a step too far from the US president.
"You cannot send letters and request a pardon for the Israeli Prime Minister in a criminal proceeding," Lapid said at the Knesset plenum. "We are a sovereign state; there is a limit to intervention."
MK Evgeny Sova (Yisrael Beytenu) slammed Netanyahu while speaking at the plenum.
“Pardon for terrorists or a pardon for the prime minister? Maybe it goes together?” he asked, probing the connection between the deportation of 200 terrorists from Rafah and Trump's letter.
MK Matti Sarfati Harkavi (Yesh Atid) said that a "prime minister who is confident in his innocence does not ask the president of the United States to write a pardon letter to the president of Israel."