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Trump says he stands with Netanyahu after a barrage of GOP criticism for saying he 'let us down'
Former President Donald Trump is stepping back from his pointed criticism of Israel
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump said Friday that he stood with Israel and its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, as his GOP rivals continued to pointedly denounce his lashing out at Netanyahu days after Hamas’ deadly attacks.
Referring to Netanyahu by his nickname, Trump posted “#IStandWithIsrael” and “#IStandWithBibi” on his Truth Social network Friday afternoon.
That stood in stark contrast to comments earlier this week, when Trump told a rally crowd in Florida that Netanyahu had “let us down” before the U.S. killed a top Iranian general. Trump further faulted the country's intelligence agencies, saying they needed to “step up their game," and referred to Hezbollah, the group Israel fears may launch a large-scale attack from the country’s north, as “very smart.”
The comments drew widespread condemnation from the White House as well as Trump's GOP rivals, who have generally avoided directly attacking the former president and GOP front-runner because he remains deeply popular with the party's base.