Israel’s president, shocked, worried over US aid cut ahead of decision on who forms government

Israeli President Isaac Herzog says President Donald Trump’s Election Day announcement ending US aid to Israel came “like a bolt from the blue,” urging the swift formation of a government. Trump said the aid, covered by a $3.8 billion-a-year MoU running to 2028, would end this year. US Ambassador Mike Huckabee sought clarification. Herzog will decide Sunday who forms the next government, as Eisenkot claims 67 seats and Netanyahu 46.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog has said President Donald Trump’s announcement ending US aid to Israel came “like a bolt from the blue,” CNN reports.

Trump announced on Tuesday, the day of the US midterm elections, in a phone interview with Fox News that aid would end this year, two years before the memorandum of understanding (MoU) expires. The MoU provides Israel $3.8 billion annually to buy American weaponry.

Herzog raised the issue in a meeting with the Yashar party, led by Gadi Eisenkot. “The issue of the American aid worries me greatly, and it also fell on me like a bolt from the blue,” he said, urging the formation of a government instead of repeated elections.

US Ambassador Mike Huckabee said he was seeking clarification. “Americans need to know the value of the relationship,” he said.

Herzog must now decide who forms the next government, a decision he will announce Sunday. Eisenkot has the backing of 67 lawmakers, 19 of them from Arab-led parties, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has 46 seats. Netanyahu has claimed the vote was “stolen.”