Skip to main content

Israeli right no longer bothered by Obama

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's last meeting with US President Barack Obama marked his success at stalling American efforts at peace.
U.S. President Barack Obama meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York September 21, 2016. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque  - RTSOTGJ
Read in 

“He doesn’t know it yet … but to a large degree, he no longer functions as the most powerful man in the world, but as a run-of-the-mill staffer for the [Hillary] Clinton campaign.” This quote is from Minister Tzachi Hanegbi, who used a Sept. 22 interview with Army Radio to explain why US President Barack Obama is no longer relevant to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. It reflects the very limited interest that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with Obama in New York on Sept. 21 evoked among the Israeli media and in the political arena.

Hanegbi, interviewed the morning after the meeting, almost sounded bored when asked to comment on the possibility that Obama might try to impose the outline of a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict on Israel in the remaining three months of his term. Adopting a bemused tone, Hanegbi asserted that if Republican candidate Donald Trump is elected, there is no doubt that he would either ridicule or ignore Obama’s plan. He also assessed that if Clinton is elected, “It is not at all certain that she will have any interest in adopting Obama’s vision.”

Access the Middle East news and analysis you can trust

Join our community of Middle East readers to experience all of Al-Monitor, including 24/7 news, analyses, memos, reports and newsletters.

Subscribe

Only $100 per year.