Trump allies defend him to Israelis anxious over Iran deal

American allies of President Donald Trump this week defended him to an Israeli public anxious about a U.S. interim deal with Iran and White House criticism that together appeared to signal fissures in Israel's decades-old alliance with Washington.



The U.S.-Israeli relationship has been on a roller coaster, from the early confidence they shared after their joint attack on Iran to public disagreements between Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over how to end the four-month-old war.



Netanyahu and many other Israelis see a risk that Trump's memorandum of understanding with Iran will empower a state they regard as their deadliest enemy and constrict their ability to respond to threats from Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.



They sense the U.S. alliance - long the bedrock of Israel's strategic approach - is under strain as opinion polls show Americans increasingly unhappy with Israel and their strongest champion in Washington appears to be turning away.



"The United States and Israel have an unbreakable bond," Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, said on Sunday after acknowledging there was an "enormous level of anxiety about the relationship."