Washington - Jerusalem: Europe and the Arabs
The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that US President Donald Trump exerted significant pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meeting. The newspaper noted that Netanyahu left the White House after a two-hour meeting without issuing a joint press statement, which may indicate disagreements behind the scenes.
Before Netanyahu arrived for the meeting, Channel 14 reported that the meeting was being marketed in Washington as a "major victory," noting that the Israeli prime minister entered through the back door reserved for Trump only, indicating the "strong relationship between them." However, other media outlets offered different interpretations after the meeting.
The meeting focused entirely on discussing ways to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza. The Walla website reported that the two sides reached an understanding on who would be responsible for delivering humanitarian aid to the Strip, most likely the United Nations. However, the issue of the deployment of Israeli forces in Gaza remains a major obstacle. According to what was published by the European news network in Brussels, "Euronews," he added, "Netanyahu insists on remaining on the Morag route, which separates the southern Gaza Strip from the rest of it and is called "Philadelphi 2." This could hinder Israel from evacuating the area where it plans to establish what it calls a "humanitarian city."
At the end of the meeting, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a brief statement referring to the meeting he had with Trump and his deputy, J.D. Vance, without going into further details.
In subsequent statements, Netanyahu said, "My meeting with Trump focused on the efforts being made to free the hostages held in Gaza." "We also discussed the implications and possibilities of the great victory we achieved over Iran, and I am determined to achieve goals that include eliminating Hamas's military and administrative capabilities."
In a speech via X, Netanyahu said, "In our meeting, we focused on the efforts being made to free our hostages. We are not faltering in this for a moment, and this is possible thanks to the military pressure exerted by our heroic soldiers."
In contrast, the US envoy postponed Steve Witkoff, who was scheduled to arrive in Doha today, has completed his flight. He had said hours earlier that he hoped to reach a deal between Tel Aviv and Hamas by the end of the week, stressing that the points of contention had been reduced from four to just one—the Morag axis.
Earlier, the Axios website quoted officials as saying that a Qatari delegation had arrived at the White House for talks on a prisoner exchange deal and a ceasefire in Gaza, and that it had met with senior officials for several hours before Netanyahu's arrival.
Several Hebrew media outlets confirmed that the issue of the Israeli army's deployment still needs more time, as it is one of the most complex issues on the table.