Netanyahu cozies up to Trump with Nobel Peace Prize nomination during White House visit
Washington DC - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court over war crimes in Gaza, said he was nominating US President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize during a visit to the White House Monday.
"He's forging peace as we speak, in one country, in one region after the other," Netanyahu said, presenting Trump with a letter he sent to the prize committee.
Netanyahu's third visit since Trump's return to power comes at a crucial time, with the US president hoping to capitalize on the momentum from a recent truce between Israel and Iran by securing a ceasefire in Gaza.
"I don't think there is a hold-up. I think things are going along very well," Trump told reporters at the start of the dinner when asked what was preventing an end to Israel's campaign of mass killing.
Sitting on the opposite side of a long table from the Israeli leader, Trump also voiced confidence that Hamas was willing to strike a deal.
"They want to meet and they want to have that ceasefire," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked if clashes involving Israeli soldiers would derail talks.
But Netanyahu was more cagey on peace with the Palestinians and ruled out a full Palestinian state, saying that Israel will "always" keep security control over the Gaza Strip.
"Now, people will say it's not a complete state, it's not a state. We don't care," he said.
Protesters demand end to military support of Israel
Protesters gathered near the White House as Trump and Netanyahu met, chanting slogans accusing the Israeli prime minister of genocide, a description shared by many human rights organizations, legal experts, and scholars.
Following in his predecessor Joe Biden's footsteps, Trump has fully enabled Israel's destruction of Gaza, as well as its aggressions against countries such as Lebanon, Iran, and Syria.
But at the same time, he has increasingly pushed for an end to what he called the "hell" in Gaza. Trump said on Sunday he believes there is a "good chance" of an agreement this coming week.
"The utmost priority for the president right now in the Middle East is to end the war in Gaza and to return all of the hostages," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Leavitt said Trump wanted Hamas to agree to a US-brokered proposal "right now" after Israel backed the plan for a ceasefire and the release of hostages held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Trump administration submits ceasefire proposal
The latest round of negotiations on the war in Gaza began on Sunday in Doha, with representatives seated in different rooms in the same building.
Monday's talks ended with "no breakthrough," a Palestinian official familiar with the negotiations told AFP.
The Hamas and Israeli delegations were due to resume talks, with Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff set to join them this week in an effort to secure a ceasefire.
The US proposal included a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release 10 living captives taken on October 7, 2023, as well as several bodies, in exchange for Palestinians caged by Israel, two sources close to the discussions had earlier told AFP.
The group was also demanding certain conditions for Israel's withdrawal, guarantees against a resumption of fighting during negotiations, and the return of the UN-led aid distribution system, they said.
Israel unilaterally broke the previous ceasefire agreement, with cover from the US, and imposed a total blockade on aid entering Gaza, bringing the territory to the brink of mass starvation.
It then took over aid distribution through a shadowy US-backed organization – the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation – at whose centers Israeli soldiers have been committing near-daily massacres of Palestinians gathering to receive food.
Cover photo: REUTERS