Trump hosts Netanyahu in Washington, says Gaza ceasefire talks ‘going along very well’

During a White House meeting with Israeli PM Netanyahu, US President Trump said Gaza ceasefire talks are progressing well. He also revealed Hamas’s willingness to end the conflict and discussed relocation plans for Palestinians and a potential 60-day truce agreement.

Washington: US President Donald Trump has said that he thinks the talks to end the war in Gaza have been “going along very well”, as he hosted visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu here.

The US President also expressed confidence that Hamas was willing to end the 21-month conflict. “They want to meet and they want to have that ceasefire,” he said in remarks to reporters at the White House, the BBC reported.

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The meeting between Trump and Netanyahu came after the latest rounds of indirect ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas in Qatar ended without a breakthrough, though negotiations were expected to continue this week.

In Monday’s remarks, Trump was asked by a journalist what was preventing a peace deal in Gaza, and he said: “I don’t think there is a hold-up. I think things are going along very well.”
Both leaders were asked about potential plans to relocate Palestinians, with Trump saying he has co-operation from countries neighbouring Israel.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, said he was working with the US on finding countries that would “give Palestinians a better future”. “If people want to stay, they can stay, but if they want to leave, they should be able to leave,” Netanyahu said.

The Palestinian presidency has previously rejected plans to relocate Palestinians, which it pointed out would violate international law.
Netanyahu also appeared to play down prospects of full Palestinian statehood, saying that Israel will “always” keep security control over the Gaza Strip, the BBC reported.

“Now, people will say it’s not a complete state, it’s not a state. We don’t care,” Netanyahu said.

At the meeting, the Israeli PM also said he had nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, reportedly a long-held goal of the US president.
“He’s forging peace as we speak, in one country, in one region after the other,” Netanyahu said as he presented Trump with a letter he sent to the prize committee.

Trump has previously said he would be “very firm” with the Israeli PM about ending the war and indicated that “we’ll have a deal” this week.

The White House initially said it would not make the meeting between the two leaders open to the media, with officials describing it as a private dinner during which Trump would prioritise the push for an end to the war and the return of all hostages.

The US-backed ceasefire proposal would reportedly see Hamas release 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 dead hostages in five stages during a 60-day truce.

Israel would be required to release an unknown number of Palestinian prisoners and withdraw from parts of Gaza, where it now controls about two-thirds of the territory.

The main outstanding issue relates to aid, as Hamas insists on ending the work of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, while the Israeli delegation refuses to discuss the issue, saying they are not authorised to discuss it.

During his visit, Netanyahu met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
As Netanyahu’s armoured limousine travelled to the White House, dozens of protesters gathered at security gates, waving Palestinian flags and shouting calls for the Israeli PM’s arrest.

Netanyahu, along with his former defence minister Yoav Gallant and a Hamas commander Mohammed Deif, were made subjects of an arrest warrant in November from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Netanyahu has rejected the allegations, calling the warrants antisemitic, while the Trump administration has imposed sanctions on four ICC judges for what it called “baseless actions targeting America or our close ally, Israel”.