Heather Nauert
Heather NauertReuters

US President Donald Trump on Friday officially nominated State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert as US Ambassador to the UN.

“I am pleased to announce that Heather Nauert, Spokeswoman for the United States Department of State, will be nominated to serve as United Nations Ambassador. I want to congratulate Heather, and thank Ambassador Nikki Haley for her great service to our Country!” tweeted Trump.

The announcement officially confirmed reports from Thursday night that Trump had decided to tap Nauert to replace Haley, who announced in October that she will exit the administration by the end of 2018, citing her desire to "take a break" from public service.

Nauert was brought on under Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and currently serves under his successor, Mike Pompeo. Before that, she was an anchor for Fox News. She will have to be confirmed by the Senate in order to assume the ambassador role.

Israel's ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, welcomed Nauert’s nomination.

"Ms. Nauert has stood by the State of Israel in her previous positions, and I have no doubt that the cooperation between our two countries will continue to strengthen as ambassador to the UN. In the past two years, we have worked closely with Ambassador Nikki Haley to change the hostile spirit in the UN, which has led to unprecedented achievements. Ambassador Haley will always be a true friend of the State of Israel," said Danon in a statement.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)