Jerusalem – David Friedman Arrives In Israel To Take Up Ambassador Position

Jerusalem – The new U.S. ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, arrived in the country to take up his position.

Friedman and his wife, Tammy, landed in Israel on Monday and were met by the Foreign Ministry’s chief of state protocol, Meron Reuben.

Immediately after arriving, Friedman traveled to Jerusalem, where he went to the Western Wall and offered a prayer for US President Donald Trump

“Well, it was a long trip. We’re a bit tired, but we wanted to come straight to the holiest place in the entire Jewish world, the ‘Kotel Hamaaravi,’ the Western Wall, so we straight came here,” Friedman said in a filmed statement provided by the US Embassy, flanked by his wife Tammy and his daughter Talia.

Friedman, who arrived at the Jewish holy site in Jerusalem’s Old City, was greeted by Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovich, the Western Wall’s rabbi. Rabinovitch read a Psalm in Hebrew before Friedman approached and kissed the stones, his eyes closed.

“I had the opportunity to say some prayers,” he said, adding that he prayed for health for his family — and for Donald Trump.

“I prayed for the president, and I wished him success, especially on his upcoming trip. I hope we all wish him success. We hope it’s going to be an amazing trip.”

He is scheduled to present his credentials to President Reuven Rivlin on Tuesday, and then get to work on preparations for President Donald Trump’s scheduled visit next week.

Friedman reportedly will work out of the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv rather than the consulate in Jerusalem, despite his support for moving the embassy to Jerusalem, and will live in the U.S. ambassador’s residence in Herzliya. Friedman owns an apartment in Jerusalem.

Friedman, a longtime Trump lawyer who is heavily invested philanthropically in the settlement movement, had derided liberal Jews in columns and elsewhere over the years. He apologized for the comments in his U.S. Senate confirmation hearings.

A range of liberal Jewish groups, including J Street and the Reform movement, had opposed Friedman’s nomination, which was approved in March by a mostly party line Senate vote of 52-46.