Vice President Mike Pence speaks before the Knesset in Jerusalem, Israel. Image by Getty Images

By Aiden Pink January 22, 2018

Vice President Mike Pence recited the Shehecheyanu, a Jewish prayer thanking God on a special occasion, in his speech to the Knesset in Israel on Monday.

פנס דיבר בעברית בנאומו: “שהחיינו וקיימנו והגיענו לזמן הזה” pic.twitter.com/JHeJERPUey

— חדשות 2 (@Channel2News) January 22, 2018

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Pence’s speech noted that Israel will mark the 70th anniversary of its independence later this year. “As you prepare to commemorate this historic milestone, I say, along with the good people of Israel, here and around the world: Shehecheyanu, v’kiyimanu, v’higiyanu la’z’man ha’zeh,” he said.

Pence’s use of the prayer earned him a standing ovation.

Pence also pledged in his speech that the United States would move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem by the end of 2019 — an earlier timeframe than was anticipated.

Although the beginning of Pence’s speech was marred by protests and walkouts from Arab-Israeli members of Knesset who were eventually removed by security, the rest of the address was largely positively received.

Contact Aiden Pink at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aidenpink

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