Image by Getty Images

By Josh Nathan-Kazis November 11, 2016

The Israeli newspaper owned by the casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson appears to have nabbed the first post-election interview with president-elect Donald Trump.

That’s the very, very first. No American media outlet has published an interview with Trump conducted since the election. Trump is scheduled to conduct his first domestic media interview with the CBS program 60 Minutes on Friday.

But Israel Hayom, the right-wing Israeli newspaper, got him on Thursday afternoon.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Trump spoke with Israel Hayom’s Boaz Bismuth after the president-elect’s meeting with President Barack Obama at the White House, according to Israel Hayom’s report.

“I look forward to strengthening the unbreakable bond between our great nations,” Trump told the Israeli paper. “I know very well that Israel is the one true democracy and defender of human rights in the Middle East and a beacon of hope to countless people.”

Image by Israel Hayom

In the interview, which appears to have been brief, Trump praised Israel, and said that he would not impose a peace process on the Israelis.

“I believe that my administration can play a significant role in helping the parties to achieve a just, lasting peace — which must be negotiated between the parties themselves, and not imposed on them by others,” Trump said. Israel and the Jewish people deserve no less.”

Israel Hayom’s Bismuth has conducted a series of interviews with Trump throughout the presidential campaign.

Adelson, who founded Israel Hayom in 2007 to support Israeli Prime Benjamin Netanyahu, is a major Republican donor, and among the wealthiest Americans. After laying low throughout much of the presidential race, he dumped tens of millions into an anti-Clinton Super PAC in the campaign’s final weeks.

Adelson was reportedly critical of Trump’s campaign strategy, and focused much his funds on Senate races.

Contact Josh Nathan-Kazis at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter, @joshnathankazis.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

2X match on all Passover gifts!

$90 → $180 $180 → $360

$360 → $720

Other amount