Netanyahu says shalom to new British PM Theresa May

Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent incoming British PM Theresa May a warm welcome this week in a letter of congratulations.

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, with her husband Philip. The British government is set to adopt a new definition of anti-Semitism. Photo: Chris Ratcliffe/AFP/Getty Images
Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, with her husband Philip. The British government is set to adopt a new definition of anti-Semitism. Photo: Chris Ratcliffe/AFP/Getty Images

ISRAEL’S prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent incoming British PM Theresa May a warm welcome this week.

Netanyahu wrote May, who officially succeeded David Cameron as prime minister on Wednesday, a letter of congratulations and felicitations following her installation, his office shared in a statement.

May, 59, is considered a longtime friend of Britain’s Jewish community and a strong advocate for Israel.

She was named party leader on Monday following weeks of jockeying and political turmoil surrounding the decision by voters to leave the European Union and Cameron’s subsequent decision to step down.

As the country’s home secretary, May was known to be a frequent guest at Jewish communal events, where she would praise Israel and British Jewry’s contributions to the country.

The Community Security Trust and other Jewish groups thanked May for securing significant government funding to protect Jewish institutions in the wake of terrorist attacks in Europe.

Supporters recalled on Monday that following the terrorist murders in 2015 at a kosher supermarket in Paris, May carried a sign at a Board of Deputies of British Jews meeting that read “Je Suis Juif” (I am Jewish), in solidarity with its victims.

JTA

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