October 23, 2026
A few days before the Israeli elections, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is intensifying his bet on highlighting his international relations. A few days after US President Donald Trump announced his public support for him, Netanyahu revealed the details of a phone call he had with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, highlighting the strength of the personal relationship between them, without the call including explicit political support from the Indian side for his electoral race.
According to a report prepared by journalist Anna Persky in the Maariv newspaper, Netanyahu published contact details through his political account on the “X” platform, in a move that went beyond the official statements issued by the Prime Minister’s Office. Netanyahu announced that he renewed his invitation to Modi to participate in the torch lighting ceremony on the occasion of Israel’s Independence Day, accompanied by the Indian pilot who saved a flight that was heading to the Hebrew state.
“On the ground and in the air, India and Israel are fighting terrorism together,” Netanyahu quoted Modi as saying during the call, adding that the Indian prime minister “expressed his appreciation for the courageous and long-standing relationship between us.” Although the invitation to Modi and the pilot to participate in the torch lighting ceremony was previously announced at the beginning of this month, what was new was the timing of publishing the content of the call and highlighting expressions of personal praise, which allows Netanyahu to market these relations as a personal achievement through his political account.
The timing is very significant, five days before the elections, as this move is consistent with the explicit political support Netanyahu received from Trump. While the American position had a direct electoral character, the statements attributed to Modi – according to what was published – did not contain any reference to the elections or a call to support Netanyahu, and were limited to valuing bilateral cooperation and the personal relationship, in addition to the fact that these details were published exclusively from the Israeli side and without issuing an independent statement from New Delhi confirming the aforementioned wording.
The background to the Indian pilot’s invitation goes back to an exceptional incident that occurred on a Fly Dubai flight heading to Israel, which was forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. The pilot, Captain Smit Bhupinder Machar, showed extreme courage after he was stabbed and seriously injured in a control attempt carried out by an Omani co-pilot who was planning to crash the plane over Israel. Despite his injury, Machar was able to summon the crew members and save the lives of all the passengers on the plane.
Thus, in the last few meters of the election campaign, Netanyahu is trying to invest in his network of international relations as a basic pillar of his political power, oscillating between declared and explicit American support, and Indian praise of bilateral relations that has distanced itself from direct interference in the Israeli electoral battle.
