Trump will talk to Gaza and Iran at a meeting with Netanyah
(a year ago)United States President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he will talk about the situation at the Gaza Strip and Iran when he meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House next week. Trump is expected to meet with Netanyah on Monday and told reporters during a visit to Florida [...]
Trump is expected to meet with Netanyah on Monday, and told reporters during a visit to Florida that it will be highly cut “with him for the need of a quick ceasefire in Gaza, stressing that Netanyah also wants one.
The senior Israeli official, Ron Dermer, has been in Washington this week to hold talks before meeting between the two leaders.
He was expected to meet with US special envoy Steve Whitoff, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and US Vice President JD Vance, an Israeli official said.
Trump and Netanyah collaborated in a military operation against Iran's nuclear power plants in June, which culminated in bombings by American bombers B-2.
Trump said the bombings of “destroyed Tehran's” nuclear capacity, however, the extent of damage caused in the Iranian nuclear programme is controversial.
Trump said he hopes a ceasefire agreement for the exchange of hostages between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hamas militants in Gaza will be reached next week, the REL reports.
Hamas is declared a terrorist organisation by the United States and the European Union.
“Hopefully it will happen. And we look forward to it happening during the next week”, he told reporters leaving the White House for a one-day visit to Florida.
“We want to release hostages”, he added.
Hamas has said he is willing to release the remaining hostages in Gaza under any agreement to end the war, while Israel says the war can be over only if Hamas disarms.
Hamas refuses to surrender his weapons.
The Gaza war began when Hamas - led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping 251 others, according to Israeli officials.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza says the Israeli war after 7 October has killed over 56,000 Palestinians.
The war has also caused a famine, displaced Gaza's entire population, and prompted charges of genocide at the International Court of Justice and War Crimes at the International Criminal Court.
Israel denies these accusations. /Periscope/