President Trump met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Tuesday as the U.S. pushes for a deal to extend the ceasefire in Gaza and free all the hostages held by Hamas.
The White House meeting is the first for Trump with any foreign leader in his second term, signaling the importance of the relationship with the U.S.’s strongest ally in the Middle East.
But tensions remain as Netanyahu faces pressure from his far right-wing allies back home to torpedo the ceasefire with Hamas and resume the assault on Gaza, while Trump hopes to forge a lasting deal with the Palestinians and even a regional peace deal.
Their meeting, along with a joint press conference and dinner, comes as Israel and Hamas resume indirect talks aimed at forging a crucial second stage of the ceasefire deal and hostage release.
It’s far from clear that the ceasefire will hold beyond the initial six weeks, or that Netanyahu even wants an extension.
The Israeli premier is suffering from low approval ratings and is battling corruption allegations. He could be vulnerable to pressure from far right-wing allies who say they will quit his government if he doesn’t order a resumption of the war that has so far failed to eliminate Hamas as promised.
Even though he strongly supports Israel, Trump also hopes to win concessions leading to a permanent ceasefire and hostage deal that would be a feather in his cap, especially since former President Biden was unable to achieve the same goal.
Trump also wants to take credit for a bigger peace deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states that would amount to a major diplomatic achievement.
The talks come as the entire Middle East region sits at a critical turning point, with the Gaza truce looking fragile and a Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire agreement in Lebanon nearing its end.
There are also continued concerns about Iran’s nuclear ambitions despite Tehran suffering a string of major setbacks in recent months across the region, like the fall of Syrian dictator Bashir al-Assad and the decimation of Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Trump’s Middle East envoy said ahead of the meeting with Netanyahu that the proposed five-year timeline for rebuilding Gaza after a permanent peace deal is “preposterous.”
Steve Witkoff said it would be more like 15 years.
Trump has suggested some or all Gaza Palestinians should be moved to neighboring Egypt or Jordan, but those countries have strongly rejected that idea and Palestinians denounce it as an endorsement of Israeli ethnic cleansing.