Trump, Netanyahu To Meet at the White House as the President Pushes for Cease-Fire

President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu will meet at the White House on Monday to discuss a range of issues, including the president’s much-desired cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. The administration has also expressed optimism that it can expand the Abraham Accords. Mr. Netanyahu arrived in the United States on Sunday, marking his third visit to Washington since Mr. Trump returned to power in January. At their first White House meeting, Mr. Trump announced that the United States would try to “take over” Gaza as part of a peace settlement, though that has yet to materialize. The prime minister has been praising Mr. Trump effusively in the wake of the American bombing of three nuclear sites in Iran, saying his “bold decision” to attack would “change history.” Even though the Iran mission is widely viewed as a success, Mr. Trump has yet to win a cease-fire agreement between the Israelis and Hamas — something he had said he would get done in a matter of days. Speaking to reporters before he departed Israel on Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu said he is committed to getting the remaining 20 living hostages home. He has also said he wants the 30 bodies of dead hostages brought back to Israel in exchange for a cease-fire. Mr. Trump announced this week that Israel has agreed to the terms of a cease-fire that would last for 60 days if implemented. Hamas has yet to accept that offer. “Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War,” Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social. “The Qataris and Egyptians, who have worked very hard to help bring Peace, will deliver this final proposal. I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE.”Last week, the president welcomed the last freed American hostage, Edan Alexander, to the Oval Office alongside Mr. Alexander’s family. “It was deeply moving to be in the White House, the same place where my parents had fought for my release so many times, but this time together with them,” Mr. Alexander told reporters about his meeting with Mr. Trump. Another potential win for Mr. Trump would be the possible normalization of diplomatic relations between Israel and Arab states in the region. This past week, the American ambassador to Turkey, Thomas Barrack, told the New York Times in an interview that the United States was mediating talks between Syria and Israel to end the conflict between the two nations.Mr. Barrack expressed optimism on behalf of the administration that Syria’s new leader, President al-Shara, will be open to the possibility of signing on to the Abraham Accords — a peace deal brokered by Mr. Trump in 2020 that saw the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain normalize relations with Israel. “He cannot be seen by his own people to be forced or coerced into the Abraham Accords,” Mr. Barrack said of Mr. al-Shara. “So he has to work slowly.” Mr. Trump has not only been trying to lean on Hamas and Arab states for potential deals with Israel — he’s using his political muscles to try to get Mr. Netanyahu out of his ongoing corruption trial. The president has compared Mr. Natanyahu’s trial to the criminal charges he himself faced in recent years. “He is right now in the process of negotiating a Deal with Hamas, which will include getting the Hostages back. How is it possible that the Prime Minister of Israel can be forced to sit in a Courtroom all day long, over NOTHING,” Mr. Trump wrote on June 28. “It is a POLITICAL WITCH HUNT, very similar to the Witch Hunt that I was forced to endure. This travesty of ‘Justice’ will interfere with both Iran and Hamas negotiations.”The president hinted that he could even cut some aid to Israel if the corruption trial continues. “The United States of America spends Billions of Dollar a year, far more than on any other Nation, protecting and supporting Israel. We are not going to stand for this,” he said in his post.

Trump, Netanyahu To Meet at the White House as the President Pushes for Cease-Fire

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