Trump insists Netanyahu relationship 'very good' despite Gaza rift
- The relationship is very good, Trump
President Trump affirmed his "very good" relationship with Prime Minister Netanyahu, despite the Israeli leader's rejection of a US-led Gaza plan unpopular with his political base ahead of elections.
- Trump's assessment of his relationship with Netanyahu.
- Netanyahu's opposition to the US-led Gaza plan.
- Political pressures on Netanyahu regarding the Gaza plan.
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump insisted Monday that his relationship with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is “very good” despite the Israeli leader’s rejection of a US-led Gaza plan.
“The relationship is very good,” Trump said in response to a shouted question from a journalist at the end of an Oval Office event.
After more than a week of gradually escalating criticism, Netanyahu explicitly stated on Sunday that he opposed the Gaza plan, which called for Israel to begin pulling back forces in tandem with disarmament by Hamas.
Also read: Gaza plan rejected by Netanyahu ‘only way forward’: Trump board
Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving leader, is running even or trailing in some polls ahead of October 27 elections, the country’s first since the devastating 2023 attack by Hamas that sparked the Gaza war.
Polls show that the Gaza plan is unpopular with Netanyahu’s right-wing base, and far-right members of his cabinet had urged him to kill it.