U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday afternoon addressed for the first time a special session of the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem.
“Thank you very much everybody. It’s a great honor—nice place,” Trump said in his opening remarks. “We gather on a day of profound joy. After two harrowing years and darkness and captivity, 20 courageous hostages are returning to the glorious embrace of their families—and it is glorious—28 more precious loved ones are coming home at last to rest in this sacred soil for all of time,” he continued.
“Today, the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still and the sun rises on a holy land that finally at peace and a region that will live, God-willing, in peace for all eternity,” said the American leader.
He declared that the ceasefire deal mediated by his administration would usher in an “golden age” for the Jewish state and the region.
“Three years ago, on the eve of the Simchat Torah holiday, thousands of innocent Israeli civilians were attacked by terrorists in one of the most evil and heinous desecrations of innocent life the world has ever seen, the worst slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust,” Trump told MKs.
According to the president, “The cruelty of Oct. 7 struck to the core of humanity itself; nobody could believe what they were witnessing.”
“The United States of America grieved alongside you and we mourn for our own citizens who were so viciously taken that day,” he said, adding: “All of the people of Israel, please know that America joins you in those two everlasting vows: Never Forget and Never Again.”
The U.S. president also thanked the Israeli military for its role in destroying Iran’s nuclear program as part of “Operation Rising Lion” in June, saying that if Tehran had built the bomb, there would not have been a deal with Hamas.
“With this week’s ceasefire, we’ve achieved the most challenging breakthrough of them all,” he continued. “This long and difficult war has now ended—you know, some people say 3,000 years, some people say 500 years, whatever it is, it’s the granddaddy of them all.”
Trump used his Knesset address by calling on additional countries to join the U.S.-brokered Abraham Accords that normalized diplomatic ties between Israel and several regional Arab and Muslim nations.
“It should now be clear to everyone throughout the region that decades of fomenting terrorism and extremism, jihadism and antisemitism have not worked. They haven’t worked,” said Trump.
In accordance with Knesset protocol, Trump spoke after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition leader Yair Lapid.
“Welcome to Jerusalem, our eternal capital,” the prime minister told Trump, opening his remarks in Hebrew. “Welcome to Israel on this emotional day.”
He continued in English, noting that it was Trump’s first visit since he recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, moved the U.S. embassy there and recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
“Donald Trump is the greatest friend that the State of Israel has ever had in the White House,” he declared to applause from across the plenum.
“Today, we welcome you here to thank you for your pivotal leadership in putting forward the proposal that got the backing of almost the entire world; a proposal that brings all our hostages home,” he continued.
Trump’s proposal for the Gaza Strip “ends the war by achieving all our objectives” and “opens the door to a historic expansion of peace in our region and beyond our region,” noted Netanyahu.
Netanyahu also announced that he had nominated Trump for the Israel Prize, which is awarded on Independence Day on April 22. The U.S. leader would be the first non-Israeli recipient, the prime minister noted.
Several coalition lawmakers, including at least one member of the ruling Likud Party, boycotted Trump’s Knesset address in protest against the U.S. president’s peace plan for the Gaza Strip.
Trump touched down at Ben-Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv earlier on Monday, as the first batch of hostages were released as part of his plan to end the war on the Hamas terrorist group.
Ahead of the speech, Netanyahu hosted Trump in his parliamentary offices, after which the U.S. leader met with hostage families.
Trump also signed the Knesset’s official guestbook, writing: “This is my great honor—a great and beautiful day, a new beginning.”
.@POTUS arrives at The Knesset, where he is greeted by Speaker of the Knesset @AmirOhana and @IsraeliPM pic.twitter.com/NRrDZo0HVn
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 13, 2025
Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana last week invited Trump to address Israel’s parliament following the U.S.-brokered agreement.
“Today is a historic day,” Ohana wrote, praising Trump’s “leadership, courage, persistence and vision” that led Hamas to agree to the deal.
“The people of Israel regard you as the greatest friend and ally of the Jewish nation in modern history,” he wrote. “It is therefore my profound honor and privilege to officially invite you to deliver a formal address to the nation before the Knesset.”
In his opening remarks, Ohana announced that, together with Mike Johnson, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, he would rally counterparts around the world to nominate Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize.
“There is no-one more deserving than you, President Trump,” he said.
