The U.S. President said his friend is being put through a “witch hunt” corruption trial, but the Israeli leader’s hold on power is threatened by domestic political issues too.

President Donald Trump’s call for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial to be thrown out has plunged the American leader into one of Israel’s most heated debates, unnerving many in its political class just days after they unanimously praised his strikes on Iran.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday night urged the Israeli state to either drop an ongoing corruption trial against the country’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or offer him a pardon, as he heaped praise on the Israeli leader just a day after he sharply rebuked his administration for launching aerial strikes on Iran after a ceasefire went into effect.