Talks With Trump Can ‘Help Advance’ Gaza Ceasefire Deal: Netanyahu Heads To US For Third Meeting In 6 Months
Netanyahu will meet Trump to discuss Iran, Gaza war, and Abraham Accords expansion. A potential 60-day ceasefire, involving hostage release, is being negotiated after Hamas's positive response.
As the tension in the Middle East remains tense, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flew from the Ben Gurion Airport on the Wing of Zion plane for his third visit with US President Donald Trump in the last six months. According to the Times of Israel, the two are expected to discuss Iran’s nuclear program, the war in Gaza, and efforts to expand the Abraham Accords.
"I believe the discussion with President Trump can certainly help advance these results," he said, adding that he was determined to ensure the return of hostages held in Gaza and to remove the threat of Hamas to Israel as quoted by Reuters.
Last week, US President Donald Trump said that Israel had agreed to conditions for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, which would allow all parties to work towards an end to Israel’s 21-month-long war on the besieged enclave. On July 4, Hamas gave a positive response to the Qatari and Egyptian mediators about the latest ceasefire proposal.
After Hamas's response to the proposal, Trump, according to an ALJAZEERA report, said that there could be a “deal next week” and promised to be “very firm” with Netanyahu to ensure a ceasefire. Since then, Israel has said that Hamas has requested changes to the proposal that it found “unacceptable”, but that Israeli negotiators would be going to Qatar on Sunday to discuss the proposal.
ALJAZEERA, citing a leaked copy, reports that the ceasefire entails a 60-day pause in hostilities and a phased release of some of the 58 Israeli captives held in Gaza since a Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The war by Israel on Gaza has at least killed 57,000 people, mostly women and children. The US president, before assuming office, had promised an end to the war. However, he did nothing when the Israeli military resumed its attacks on Gaza, killing thousands more people.
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