Obama arrives in Israel

US President Barack Obama arrived in Israel today on his first ever official visit to the country. The US president was welcomed at Tel-Aviv's Ben-Gurion Airport by Israeli President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu, Parliamentary Speaker Yuly Edelstein and all the members of the newly-appointed cabinet of ministers.

President Obama hailed bilateral cooperation and assured the Israeli officials that the US remains the country's ally. "I am confident in declaring that our alliance is eternal," he is quoted as saying by the Jerusalem Post.

The newspaper informs that the US president described his official visit as "an opportunity to reaffirm the unbreakable bond between the two nations, to restate America's unwavering commitment to Israel's security and to speak directly to the people of Israel and to its neighbours."

President Shimon Peres addressed Obama, saying that the US president's visit to the country was “a crowning demonstration of the profound relationship between our two nations,” the Jerusalem Post writes.

Prime Minister Netanyahu also said he appreciated the two countries' bilateral relations and thanked the United States for supporting the Israeli people.