Jerusalem: US President Donald Trump will not travel to Israel to attend the country’s 78th Independence Day celebrations next week in view of the ceasefire schedule with Iran, the Israeli media reported on Tuesday.
Israeli news media outlet Ynet reported that Trump will not come to Israel on Independence Day and he will not participate in the Israel Prize ceremony – “not even via a video speech”.
In December, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that, breaking with several decades of tradition, the country will award Trump the Israel Prize – the country’s highest cultural honour.
“We decided to break a convention, or create a new one, and that is to award the Israel Prize, which in almost our 80 years we’ve never awarded it to a non-Israeli, and we are going to award it this year to President Trump,” Netanyahu said while standing alongside the US President during a news conference in Florida on December 29.
Trump is scheduled to receive the award on his next visit to Israel.
Ynet reported on Tuesday that singer Noa Kirl’s participation at the event has also been postponed as she was supposed to sing in honour of the American President with Trump’s granddaughters also possibly performing along with her.
“It should be noted that the White House has not officially announced that Trump will not come to Israel, but Jerusalem already understands that given the timetable for the ceasefire with Iran and its end on April 21, the chance that he will come is close to zero, as the ceremony is scheduled to take place on April 22. During the Israel Prize ceremony, there will be a mention of Trump’s win in the video, but as mentioned, the awarding of the prize will be postponed to a separate ceremony to be held in his honour when he arrives in Israel later,” Ynet reported.
The report mentioned that, however, Argentine President Javier Milay will participate in the Israeli Independence Day celebrations as an agreement on his arrival was reached even before the ceasefire with Iran, and Milay is expected to land in Israel on April 18, during the Sabbath.
(IANS)
