Obama in Israel? The U.S. President, Barack Hussein Obama has finally made it to Israel as a president! He had to wait so long to visit! Whole four years…
However, Obama thinks that it’s not late at all! He even thinks he is very early on this. He stated that…
“As I begin my second term as president.. Israel is the first stop on my first foreign trip… This is no accident…”
Still. One has to admit that he already went to Israel as president elect in 2008. However, that was after making his famous apology speech in Cairo.
So, who did Mr. Barack Hussein Obama meet this time around? Here we go…
Obama Met King Bibi!
Yes, after all those years of cold relationship, Benjamin Netanyahu and Barack Obama got to meet up and smile in front of cameras like a happy couple!
It’s no secret that the two of them had a hard time during the Obama’s first term. It was published in Israeli media that (then) French President Sarkozy said to Obama that (Benjamin Netanyahu) is a “liar” and that he “can’t stand him anymore”, to which Obama responded…
You (Sarkozy) may be sick of him (Netanyahu), but me, I have to deal with him every day.
You can find more pictures of Netanyahu and Obama here.
Obama Met President Shimon Peres
Nobody knows, including me and probably you, why Shimon Peres was very happy to meet President Obama. I have to agree with Jay Shapiro (from Israel National Radio), who said that President Peres has to be very forgetful at his age (89), that he forgot who Obama was, and what he stood for.
Haarets said that President Shimon Peres told President Barack Obama that the current Israeli coalition government won’t allow much space for Netanyahu to resume the negotiations with the Palestinians, since many coalition members oppose a future Palestinian state. (Naftali Bennett to name one)
The White House published remarks by Obama and Peres, where Peres said to Obama:
We are trying together to start negotiations with the Palestinians. We already agreed that the goal is a two states for the two people solution. There is no better one, or more achievable one. We consider that the President of the Palestinian Authority, Abu Mazen, is our partner in that effort to stop terror and bring peace.
That’s not a surprise from a Kadima president…
But interesting is what he (Shimon Peres) said about the Arab Spring…
There is an attempt to bring spring to the Arab world. It is an Arab choice. It is an Arab initiative. It may bring peace to the region, freedom to the people, economic growth to the Arab states. If realized, it can lead to a better tomorrow. We pray it will become a reality.
While President Obama said later about the ongoing peace process..
The Talmud recounts the story of Honi, the miracle worker, who saw a man planting a carob tree. And he asked the man, how long before this tree yields fruit? To which the man responded, “Seventy years.” And so Honi asked, “Are you sure you’ll be alive in another 70 years to see it?” And the man replied, “When I came into the world, I found carob trees. As my forefathers planted for me, so will I plant for my children.”
(You can read the full story at the White House’s official website)
Obama Met Miss Israel!
Yityish Aynaw, better known as Queen Titi is the new Miss Israel, she is the first African Miss Israel ever.
Yityish Aynaw (who was born in Ethiopia) sees in Barack Obama an “idol” and someone who she “always looked up to”.
In an interview with Jewish News Channel (JN1) , she said
“I am very nervous to meet him. He is the president of the USA, a huge man and so excited to meet him I don’t think ever I go to meet with Obama. It’s a dream for me and I am happy that this dream come true now.”
You can watch the short interview of Miss Israel Yityish Aynaw here:
Beside Obama, Queen Titi also considers Martin Luther King to be one of her idols, which is understandable.
Obama Met Naftali Bennett
At the presidential palace in Jerusalem, President Peres introduced Barack Obama to Naftali Bennett, the chairman of Israeli right-wing party, Habayit Hayehudi.
Obama said to Bennett…
“I heard about you. You’re the man who came out of nowhere, managed to sweep the people and won.”
However, Bennett told him…
“I just finished reading the biography of President Truman. Since President Truman there hasn’t been a U.S. President who is as responsible for the fate of the Jewish people as the responsibility that rests on your shoulders.”
Still Bennett opposes the famous two-state solution and thinks that it threatens Israel’s security. And replied to Obama’s remarks about settlements as…
“There is no such thing as an occupation in one’s own land,”
Obama still wanted to meet Bennett later and said that he is “interested in hearing different voices from Israel”.
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