Rabat – US President Donald Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday evening, urging him to end the genocidal war on Gaza. The meeting came as a glimmer of renewed hope for a ceasefire rise following a recent truce between Israel and Iran.
Trump told reporters that peace talks are allegedly moving in a “very good” direction and expressed confidence that Hamas is ready to accept a 60-day ceasefire deal. “They want to meet and they want to have that ceasefire,” he said.
Indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel resumed in Qatar on Sunday. A Palestinian official told AFP that Monday’s talks ended without a breakthrough, but discussions are expected to continue this week.
Additionally, Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, is expected to travel to Doha to help push the ceasefire deal forward.
AFP quoted two Palestinian sources close to the talks as saying that the US-backed proposal includes a 60-day truce, as well as a prisoner exchange with the release of 10 Israeli hostages and several bodies held by Hamas for an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners by Israel. Also listed are Hamas’ conditions for Israel’s gradual withdrawal from Gaza, guarantees to avoid renewed fighting, and the return of the UN-led aid distribution system.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said ending the “war” and bringing home the hostages are Trump’s top priorities in the region.
Netanyahu says no to a full Palestinian state
During the dinner at the White House, Netanyahu said Israel would always keep security control over Gaza and ruled out creating a full Palestinian state. “People will say it’s not a complete state, it’s not a state. We don’t care,” he said.
Despite the ongoing talks, violence on the ground has not stopped, and Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) continue their relentless attacks on civilians. On Monday, at least 12 people were killed in Gaza by the IOF, including six people inside a clinic sheltering displaced families, according to Gaza’s civil defense agency.
In addition, Israel has targeted hundreds of civilians seeking aid at US-backed aid distribution points.
As Trump and Netanyahu met in Washington, several dozen American protesters gathered near the White House, chanting against US complicity in Israel’s genocide on Gaza and accusnig Netanyahu of war crimes.
