
Netanyahu is about to find out how far Trump will bend to his will
But it will also come with trickier talks about a ceasefire in Gaza, and what comes next in the Middle East.
Those two strands illustrate the complex relationship between an America First president and an Israeli ally worried about how Mr Trump has gone it alone when it has suited him.
When Mr Trump welcomes Mr Netanyahu into the Oval Office, he will know the Israeli prime minister holds the key to unlocking his grand vision for the Middle East.
A normalisation deal between the Jewish state and Saudi Arabia is the great unfinished business of the Abraham Accords brokered in his first term, which saw Israel establish diplomatic links with the UAE, Bahrain and others.
Mohammed Bin Salman, the Saudi Crown Prince, has made it clear that there can be no hope of that until the war is ended and, at the very least, the Palestinian people are put on a meaningful path to statehood.
At times, the delicate balancing act Mr Trump must perform – supporting Israel, while being mindful of the views of America's Arab allies – has generated headlines about rifts over bombing Iran or the need to end the war in Gaza.
But insiders say the relationship – between two men who see themselves in each other, and have sometimes used misdirection to hide their mutual plans – is closer than you think.
'Netanyahu, you know, he's sort of like Trump,' said a source close to the White House describing Mr Trump's view of their connection. 'He's disliked, hated by a lot of people, but he wins.'
Rollercoaster of highs and lows
The low point in their relationship came after the 2020 election, he added, when Mr Netanyahu congratulated Joe Biden on his victory.
'I haven't spoken to him since. F--- him,' Mr Trump was quoted as saying at the time.
Yet Mr Netanyahu now holds a privileged place. He is making his third visit to the White House in less than six months.
Top of the agenda will be what comes next in stifling Iran's nuclear programme and a deal to release the last hostages held by Hamas.
Mr Trump has ramped up expectations of a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, although a source said the meeting on Monday was being 'low keyed', without high hopes of a major breakthrough.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Guardian
38 minutes ago
- The Guardian
US issues sanctions against Francesca Albanese, UN official investigating abuses in Gaza
The Trump administration announced on Wednesday it was issuing sanctions against an independent official tasked with investigating human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories, the latest effort by the United States to punish critics of Israel's 21-month war in Gaza. The state department's decision to sanction Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur for the West Bank and Gaza, comes after a recent US pressure campaign to force the international body to remove her from her post failed. Albanese, a human rights lawyer, has been vocal in calling for an end to what she describes as the 'genocide' that Israel is waging against Palestinians in Gaza. Both Israel and the US, which provides military support, have strongly denied that accusation. Israel has faced accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the ICC over its devastating military assault on Gaza. Albanese's position has also been backed by leading genocide scholars and rights organisations. In a post on X late on Wednesday, Albanese wrote that she stood 'firmly and convincingly on the side of justice, as I have always done,' without directly mentioning the US sanctions. In a text message to Al Jazeera, she was quoted as dismissing the US move as 'mafia style intimidation techniques.' In recent weeks, Albanese has issued a series of letters, urging other countries to pressure Israel, including through sanctions, to end its deadly bombardment of the Gaza Strip. The Italian national has also been a strong supporter of the international criminal court's indictment of Israeli officials, including the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for war crimes. She most recently issued a report naming several US giants among companies aiding what she described as Israel's occupation and war on Gaza. 'Albanese's campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel will no longer be tolerated,' the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, posted on social media. 'We will always stand by our partners in their right to self-defense.' Albanese has been the target of criticism from pro-Israel officials and groups in the US and in the Middle East. Last week, the US mission to the UN issued a scathing statement, calling for her removal for 'a years-long pattern of virulent antisemitism and unrelenting anti-Israel bias'. The statement said that Albanese's allegations of Israel committing genocide or apartheid are 'false and offensive'. It is the culmination of an extraordinary and sprawling campaign of nearly six months by the Trump administration to quell criticism of Israel's handling of the deadly war in Gaza, which is closing in on two years. Earlier this year, the Trump administration began arresting and deporting faculty and students of American universities who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations and other political activities. Rights experts slammed the US sanctions against Albanese. Dylan Williams, vice-president for government affairs at the Center for International Policy thinktank, labeled them as 'rogue state behavior' while Amnesty International said special rapporteurs must be supported and not sanctioned. 'Governments around the world and all actors who believe in the rule-based order and international law must do everything in their power to mitigate and block the effect of the sanctions against Francesca Albanese and more generally to protect the work and independence of Special Rapporteurs,' Agnes Callamard, Amnesty International's secretary general and a former UN special rapporteur herself, said. The war between Israel and Hamas began on 7 October 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel and killed nearly 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 people captive. Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, which says women and children make up most of the dead but does not specify how many were fighters or civilians. The number is widely believed to be a huge underestimate. Nearly 21 months into the conflict that displaced the vast majority of Gaza's 2.3 million people, it is nearly impossible for the critically wounded to get the care they need, doctors and aid workers say. 'We must stop this genocide, whose short-term goal is completing the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, while also profiteering from the killing machine devised to perform it,' Albanese said in a recent post on X. 'No one is safe until everyone is safe.' With Associated Press and Reuters


The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump warned Putin he will bomb Moscow if Ukraine is attacked as Kyiv faces relentless drone strikes
Donald Trump threatened to 'bomb the s*** out of Moscow ' if Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine, according to a new book. 'With Putin I said, 'If you go into Ukraine, I'm going to bomb the s*** out of Moscow. I'm telling you I have no choice,' Mr Trump said in the audio, referring to a conversation with the Russian president. 'And then [Putin] goes, like, 'I don't believe you.' But he believed me 10%,' Mr Trump said. The remark was among several captured in a series of audio tapes from 2024 fundraisers in New York and Florida but it is not clear when the exchange took place. CNN aired the clips on Tuesday night. This comes as Kyiv faced another relentless night of attacks from Russian drones and missiles, leaving at least 12 injured, officials said. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has resumed sending some weapons to Ukraine, a week after the Pentagon had directed that some deliveries be paused, US officials said. The weapons heading into Ukraine include 155 mm munitions and precision-guided rockets known as GMLRS, two officials aware of the developments said.


Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Elon Musk unfollows MAGA allies as he fumes over Jeffrey Epstein client list 'cover-up'
Elon Musk has carried out a mass purge of Trump administration allies from his social media, after weeks of mounting tensions over the Big Beautiful Bill bubbled over into a full-scale attack on the integrity of officials working on the Jeffrey Epstein case. The world's richest man has expressed fury over Attorney General Pam Bondi's claims that a full and thorough investigation had not produced an Epstein 'client list' which she had previously said existed. 'This is the final straw,' Musk said, sharing a meme. One day later, he unfollowed Bondi on his X account. He then unfollowed Fox News, which had earlier platformed Bondi as she insisted she had thoroughly investigated the matter. Trump had vowed to uncover the true extent of the 'cover up' surrounding Epstein's crime and his death. Now, the FBI and Bondi insist he did in fact commit suicide, and that the purported client list they'd long discussed does not exist. Musk has also now purged his X account of other Trump allies, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, Congresswoman Nancy Mace, Energy Secretary Chris White, MAGA activist Scott Presler and the White House 's Rapid Response account. He railed against the Trump administration for not taking any action to arrest those related to Epstein's child sex trafficking crimes, twice suggesting it was because they were looking to cover for people on the list. Back in early June when he and Trump first fell out over the Big Beautiful Bill, Musk sensationally claimed on X that the president was 'in the Epstein files' and thus trying to delay their publication. 'Time to drop the really big bomb: [Trump] is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!',' he wrote, before ultimately deleting the post and apologizing. Now he claims that former Trump advisor Steve Bannon is implicated in the files. Trump addressed the Epstein files on Tuesday during a Cabinet meeting, appearing to mock a reporter who questioned Bondi's findings. 'Are you still talking about Epstein? This guy has been talked about for years. Are people still talking about this creep? I can't believe you're asking a question about Epstein,' the president said. Trump's base, including high-profile allies like Tucker Carlson and Glenn Beck, are demanding answers and accusing Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel of 'lying' to the American public. Right-wing journalist Laura Loomer posted: 'Who releases a statement about the Epstein files on the Sunday night of 4th of July weekend? Someone who doesn't want you paying attention.' Earlier this year the Trump administration hosted conservative influencers to the White House to give them updates on the Epstein files. The group was trotted out of the residence holding binders that claimed to contain additional information on Epstein and his crimes. However, the contents of those binders were later discovered to be full of previously disclosed information and lacked any new bombshells as promised. Bondi said in February Epstein's client list was 'sitting on her desk,' but has since walked back that statement. Musk's status within Trump's political sphere has been teetering on the brink for months after the duo fell out over Trump's controversial Big Beautiful Bill, which ultimately passed through Congress last week. He described the bill as an 'abomination' which would 'destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country.' Trump's BBB is $3.3 trillion legislation package encapsulating much of what he campaigned on, extending the 2017 tax cuts and eliminating tax on tips and overtime. At the time, many Republicans refrained from publicly criticizing Musk even as he and Trump's tit-for-tat worsened. Speaker Johnson said at the time: 'I count Elon Musk as a good friend, and Congressional Republicans appreciate everything he has done to put a spotlight on waste, fraud, and abuse in government. 'With all due respect, Elon is simply wrong about the One Big Beautiful Bill.' But the relationship has soured even further with Musk's latest round of attacks and in light of his vow to launch an America Party to run against the Republicans and Democrats. The party will challenge Republicans in the 2026 midterm election, targeting specifically those who voted in favor of the BBB - which was all but five Republicans. 'I am saddened to watch Elon Musk go completely 'off the rails,' essentially becoming a TRAIN WRECK over the past five weeks. He even wants to start a Third Political Party, despite the fact that they have never succeeded in the United States,' Trump said. Even Trump's most loyal right-hand woman, referred to as the 'Ice Maiden' in Washington, has now weighed in on the demise of the bromance her boss and Musk briefly enjoyed. Chief of Staff Susie Wiles said Musk appeared to have a 'fatherly fixation' on Trump and the pair shared somewhat of a father-son connection. 'It was a great thing when it was a great thing, and had a very, I think, a very troublesome ending,' she said. 'The president was very, very kind to him, and Elon had so much to offer us... I know that what has been said doesn't ring accurate to me, but I don't know, I enjoyed working with Elon.'