Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, he will discuss the victory over Hamas, countering Iran and expanding diplomatic relations with Arab countries in his meeting with US President Donald Trump. Tuesday’s meeting at the White House will be Trump’s first with a foreign leader since returning to office. It comes as US and Arab mediators begin the daunting work of brokering the next phase of an agreement to wind down the war in the Gaza Strip and release dozens of militant-held hostages.
Meanwhile, Hamas has said, it will not release the hostages slated to go free in the second phase without an end to the war and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces.
On the other hand, Netanyahu is under mounting pressure from far-right governing partners to resume the war after the first phase ends in early March. He has said, Israel is still committed to victory over Hamas and the return of all the hostages captured in the militants’ October 7, 2023 attack that triggered the war.
