'Might it now be time to call...?'

Former Israeli envoy to UN urges Biden to phone Netanyahu, tweets his number

Danny Danon chides US president for failing to contact Israeli PM, after already speaking to numerous world leaders, opening him up to some online ridicule

Then Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon listens to speakers at the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, September 24, 2019. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Then Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon listens to speakers at the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, September 24, 2019. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon on Wednesday implored US President Joe Biden to call Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Danon wrote on Twitter that Biden had called world leaders from 10 different countries, including longtime US allies Canada, the UK, France and Germany.

“Might it now be time to call the leader of Israel, the closest ally of the US?” Danon wrote.

He even added a phone number that he said was Netanyahu’s. However, that number was apparently out of date and no longer in service.

Danon, whose tenure ended in July, is a member of Netanyahu’s Likud but is not on the party’s slate for the upcoming March elections.

Several hours before Danon’s tweet, Likud decided to remove him from his post as chairman of World Likud as of February 14, following an internal spat over the post that involved power struggles between major power brokers in the party.

The Times of Israel’s sister-site Zman Yisrael reported that some in Likud believe Danon issued the tweet to embarrass Netanyahu and spur him to appoint him to a new role, to avoid further embarrassment.

Danon’s tweet indeed gained some attention from diplomats, reporters and other public figures.

It was retweeted over 1,000 times, including by CNN’s Jake Tapper, as well as actor Seth Rogen, who wrote, “Most Jewish tweet ever. ‘You never call!’”

Gérard Araud, France’s former envoy to the US, Israel and the UN, wrote in response to Danon’s tweet, “French proverb: ‘When cuckolded, don’t shout it from the rooftops.’”

Opher Aviran, Israel’s former consul general to the southeastern US, wrote to Danon: “You are an embarrassment to us in Israel. You have no clue what diplomacy is all about.”

Biden’s failure to call Netanyahu several weeks into his administration is seen by some as a snub, and has led to speculation about his approach to Israel. Biden has not yet called other US allies in the Middle East either.

The Biden administration is expected to take a more conciliatory approach to Iran than the Trump White House, despite protestation from Israel and other US allies in the Middle East.

Netanyahu had a close relationship with former US president Donald Trump, and a famously acrimonious relationship with former president Barack Obama while Biden was vice president.

However, he and Biden have had a good relationship for decades.

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