Trump's second endorsement for Netanyahu arrives days before Israeli vote

Israel's election is days away, and the U.S. president weighed in Sunday evening with his second endorsement of Benjamin Netanyahu.

In a Truth Social post, Donald Trump called Netanyahu an "outstanding Warrior Prime Minister" and urged Israeli voters to remember that record at the polls. He described their working relationship as "winning together," citing Operation Midnight Hammer and Operation Epic Fury as examples, and closed with an appeal: "Vote for Bibi Netanyahu for Prime Minister; we have to finish the job that we started!"

The post also carried a warning about a different outcome. "If Israel has the wrong leader, meaning anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this job itself, and I'm not inclined to do that," Trump wrote. The Jerusalem Post reported that the remark referred to the confrontation with Iran.

The endorsement followed reporting earlier Sunday that Netanyahu had stepped up efforts to secure additional backing from Washington. Two American sources told the newspaper that Netanyahu and his supporters inside Trump's inner circle were increasing pressure on Trump to issue new statements of support. "We have never seen Netanyahu like this before. He is showing signs of political desperation," the sources said.

Axios separately reported that Netanyahu and Trump spoke twice over the previous three days. An Israeli source briefed on those contacts told Axios that Netanyahu suggested possible wording for new endorsements and also proposed that Trump speak with Israeli journalists to repeat his support.

Israeli voters head to the polls after a campaign in which the prime minister has sought exactly this kind of public backing from the U.S. president.

Trump's post praised Netanyahu's leadership, asked Israelis to vote for him, and set out a consequence for choosing another candidate. The message was published Sunday evening, days before the vote.