Israel’s Netanyahu rips Trump’s “unacceptable” dinner with Ye, Nick Fuentes

Benjamin Netanyahu, the former prime minister of Israel, said on Sunday that former President Donald Trump was “wrong” for dining with rapper Kanye West and white nationalist Nick Fuentes at Mar-a-Lago last month.

Trump is facing bipartisan condemnation for dining with Fuentes and West, who has made several antisemitic comments in recent weeks, just weeks after announcing his 2024 presidential campaign. Critics have raised concerns that the meeting shows poor judgment and have questioned why the former president has not offered to rebuke their antisemitism, as Trump has defended the meeting.

Netanyahu, who was a key global ally to the Trump administration, was asked about the dinner during an appearance on NBC News’ Meet the Press on Sunday morning.

While Netanyahu offered praise for several of Trump’s actions as president—including the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over Golan Heights and opposition to the Iran Nuclear Deal—he denounced the controversial dinner.

“On this matter on Kanye West and that other unacceptable guest—I think it’s not really unacceptable. It’s just wrong. I hope he sees his way to staying out of it,” he said.

The dinner has been met with fierce backlash from Jewish groups and some Republicans. Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), described the dinner as “appalling.” Meanwhile, Trump’s former Vice President Mike Pence said he should apologize for the meeting.

Trump, however, has hit back at the criticism in several Truth Social posts. In them, he said he agreed to the dinner to “help a seriously troubled man, who just happens to be Black” by giving the rapper advice.

West also recently announced his plans to run for president in 2024. In a video posted to Twitter, the rapper said that Trump was “perturbed” after he asked the former president to be his vice presidential running mate during the Mar-a-Lago dinner.

Meanwhile, Trump also said he “knew nothing about” Fuentes, who the ADL describes as a “white supremacist leader and organizer and podcaster who seeks to forge a white nationalist alternative to the mainstream GOP.”

Trump’s Relationship with Netanyahu Deteriorated After 2020 Election

Trump presented himself as a strong ally to Israel throughout his presidency, taking several actions aimed at strengthening ties between the United States and Israeli governments—oftentimes evoking the ire of human rights activists who have raised concerns about the treatment of Palestinians in the country.

In 2017, Netanyahu praised Trump’s support for Israel, saying during a speech at the United Nations: “Thanks to President Trump’s unequivocal support for Israel in this body, that positive change is gathering force.”

However, their relationship took a hit after Netanyahu congratulated President Joe Biden on his victory during the 2020 presidential election. Trump, without substantial evidence, has repeatedly denied the election results claiming that he lost due to widespread voter fraud.

According to journalist Barak Ravid, who wrote the book Trump’s Peace: The Abraham Accords and the Reshaping of the Middle East, Trump slammed Netanyahu for acknowledging Biden’s victory.

“He was very early. Like earlier than most. I haven’t spoken to him since…” Trump said, according to Ravid.

West Continued Antisemitic Remarks After Trump Dinner

Netanyahu’s remarks come after West, who legally changed his name to Ye last year, doubled down on antisemitic comments this week. During an appearance on InfoWars, hosted by Alex Jones, West said he likes Adolf Hitler, who oversaw the mass genocide of an estimated 6 million Jewish people.

“I’m not trying to be shocking. I like Hitler. I do not…the Holocaust is not what happened. Let’s look at the facts of that. Hitler has a lot of redeeming qualities,” West said.

On Thursday, West tweeted a photograph that appeared to show a swastika, the symbol of Nazis, inside the Star of David, a symbol of Judaism. He was suspended from Twitter over the photograph.

Fuentes has also espoused views denying the Holocaust, at one point “jokingly” comparing the genocide to baking cookies in an oven, according to the ADL.

Newsweek reached out to Trump’s office for comment.