Trump, Netanyahu meet for a second time to discuss a Gaza ceasefire

United States President Donald Trump has met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu astatine the White House for a 2nd clip successful 24 hours to sermon a imaginable ceasefire woody successful Gaza.

The unscheduled talks connected Tuesday evening lasted conscionable implicit an hour, with nary media access.

Ahead of the meeting, Trump said helium would beryllium speaking with Netanyahu “almost exclusively” astir Gaza.

“We gotta get that solved. Gaza is… it’s a tragedy, and helium wants to get it solved, and I privation to get it solved, and I deliberation the different broadside wants to,” helium said.

The 2 men had besides met for respective hours during a meal astatine the White House connected Monday during Netanyahu’s 3rd sojourn to the US since the president began his 2nd word connected January 20.

Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna, reporting from Washington, DC, said the latest gathering was “tightly sealed with precise small accusation coming out”.

“The information that it was truthful hermetically sealed, the information that determination has been nary wide readout of precisely what was discussed, the information that the gathering lasted conscionable implicit an hr earlier the premier curate returned to his residence – each of it whitethorn bespeak that there’s immoderate benignant of stumbling block, thing that is clouding the optimistic presumption that the 2 leaders person adopted implicit the past 24 hours,” Hanna said.

Shortly earlier the unscheduled meeting, Trump’s peculiar envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said the issues keeping Israel and Hamas from agreeing had dropped to 1 from four, and helium hoped to scope a impermanent ceasefire statement this week.

“We are hopeful that by the extremity of this week, we’ll person an statement that volition bring america into a 60-day ceasefire. Ten unrecorded hostages volition beryllium released. Nine deceased volition beryllium released,” Witkoff told reporters astatine a gathering of Trump’s Cabinet.

But Netanyahu, gathering with the talker of the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, said Israel’s run successful the Palestinian enclave was not done and that negotiators are “certainly working” connected a ceasefire.

“We person inactive to decorativeness the occupation successful Gaza, merchandise each our hostages, destruct and destruct Hamas’s subject and authorities capabilities,” the Israeli person said.

Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh, reporting from Jordan, said Israeli media are reporting that Netanyahu is facing “extreme pressure” to scope a woody connected Gaza.

“But still, there’s been nary breakthrough,” she said from the Jordanian capital, Amman.

“Israeli media is besides talking astir a hold successful the question plans of Witkoff to Doha, though earlier successful the night, helium had sounded precise optimistic astir perchance reaching a deal. Because according to him, lone 1 contented remained problematic – which is, ‘Where volition the Israeli service redeploy to?'” Odeh said.

“Now, this is important, due to the fact that Israel wants to support power implicit the metropolis of Rafah successful confederate Gaza. According to the Israeli curate of defence, Israel plans to physique a structure metropolis successful Rafah, wherever it volition ore the population, power who enters, not let anyone to leave, and past propulsion the colonisation retired of Gaza to implement, according to the Israelis, the Trump program of depopulating Gaza and taking implicit the enclave,” she added.

Israel’s warfare successful Gaza has killed astatine slightest 57,575 Palestinians and wounded 136,879 others. Most of Gaza’s colonisation has been displaced by the war, and astir fractional a cardinal radical are facing famine wrong months, according to United Nations estimates.

An estimated 1,139 radical were killed successful Israel during the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, and much than 200 were taken captive.

Some 50 captives stay successful Gaza, with 20 believed to beryllium alive.

Trump has powerfully supported Netanyahu, adjacent wading into home Israeli authorities by criticising prosecutors implicit a corruption proceedings against the Israeli person connected bribery, fraud and breach-of-trust charges, which Netanyahu denies.

In his remarks to reporters astatine the US Congress, Netanyahu praised Trump, saying that determination has ne'er been person coordination betwixt the US and Israel successful his country’s history.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies