WATCH: Israel Envoy David Friedman Says He Prayed For Trump At Western Wall
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
By Naomi Zeveloff May 16, 2017
The new U.S. ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, prayed for Trump at the Western Wall on his first day in Israel.
In a video posted to Twitter by the U.S. embassy, Friedman said that he came straight to the Western Wall from the airport with his wife and daughter on Monday.
Welcome to US Ambassador to #Israel David Friedman. First stop- a prayer at the #WesternWall pic.twitter.com/FTkzt2uQmA
— USEmbassyTelAviv (@usembassyta) May 15, 2017
“I prayed for of course the health of my family, my children, my grandchildren. I prayed for the president, and I wish him success especially in his upcoming trip,” he said. Trump will reportedly be arriving in Israel next week.
Friedman said that he said the shehecheyanu prayer at the wall, which marks special occasions and new experiences.
Friedman landed in Israel after a battle over his confirmation earlier this year.
A financial backer of the settlement movement who has publicly derogated the liberal Jewish group J Street — he later apologized for his remarks — Friedman was confirmed in the Senate on a vote of 52 to 46.
It was the most narrow vote for a U.S. Israel envoy in history.
Contact Naomi Zeveloff at [email protected] or on Twitter @naomizeveloff
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
