The ruling Likud party has scrapped a planned election campaign push highlighting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s close ties with US President Donald Trump, amid domestic dismay with the US-Iran peace deal, according to a new report.

The party reached its decision several days ago as details of the deal emerged, the i24 news outlet reported on Tuesday.

The agreement is expected to halt the US blockade of Iran, reopen the Strait of Hormuz and begin 60 days of talks on Tehran’s nuclear program. It does not dismantle Iran’s nuclear program, and would reportedly require Israel to halt its offensive against Iran’s Lebanese terror proxy Hezbollah. Trump’s own criticism of Israel over the fighting in Lebanon has grown increasingly public and profane in recent weeks, leading to rising Israeli anger and disappointment with the usually popular American leader.

While the agreement materialized, Likud officials assessed that highlighting the two leaders’ rapport would not confer an advantage on Netanyahu in the elections, which are scheduled for October at the latest, the unsourced i24 report said.

The report did not specify how far preparations for the PR push had gone. The outlet did not say if it had approached Likud for comment.

Likud........

© The Times of Israel