WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama will honor outgoing Israeli President Shimon Peres (shee-MOHN’ PEHR’-ehs) next week during his final visit to Washington before leaving office.
The White House says Peres will receive the Congressional Gold Medal recognizing his lifelong dedication to the cause of peace. The leaders of the House and Senate will be on hand for the ceremony.
The Israeli president’s office says Peres will also meet with Obama at the White House on June 25. It’s Peres’ final foreign trip before nationalist politician Reuven Rivlin takes over as president in July.
The 90-year-old Peres is a Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He held nearly every major position in Israeli politics during his 65-year political career. Obama presented him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.
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