Netanyahu nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize as Gaza bleeds
The symbolic nomination came during Netanyahu's visit to the White House, where he met with President Trump to discuss the latest ceasefire proposal mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States. The visit follows weeks of diplomatic maneuvering, with Washington reportedly intensifying pressure on 'Israel' to accept a temporary truce.
'He's forging peace as we speak,' Netanyahu said, presenting Trump with a letter sent to the Nobel committee.
The Israeli leader claimed Trump deserved the award for his efforts to mediate regional conflicts and his prior role in normalizing relations between "Israel" and several Arab states.
Yet, while the two leaders dined and exchanged symbolic gestures, Gaza was reeling from another night of intense Israeli bombardment.
Meanwhile, Jewish rabbis organized a demonstration in Washington to protest Netanyahu's arrival to the White House, holding placards condemning the Israeli prime minister.
The placards called Netanyahu a war criminal and called for all occupied Palestinian territories to be returned to Palestinians.
Read more: Israeli airstrikes on Gaza kill dozens, hit hospitals, shelters
Over in Gaza, specifically in Beit Hanoun, the Palestinian Resistance staged an ambush targeting Israeli occupation forces, as the Israeli prime minister met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff ahead of talks with Trump.
Netanyahu was reportedly shocked when briefed on the attack, which killed six troops and injured more than 10 others, according to initial reports. The attack targeted an Israeli armored vehicle, causing casualties, and involved two other stages in which rescue forces were also attacked.
When asked about the incident and whether it would derail negotiations, Trump said he believed Hamas wanted to reach a deal, telling reporters at the White House, 'They want to meet and they want to have that ceasefire.'
Netanyahu reiterated controversial comments suggesting that Palestinians in Gaza should be free to leave the Strip if they choose. 'If people want to stay, they can stay. But if people want to leave, they can leave. It shouldn't be a prison,' he said.
The so-called policy of "voluntary migration" has become a central pillar of Israeli decision-making in recent years, with the aim of rendering life so intolerable for Palestinians that they are ultimately forced to leave their homeland. Under the guise of choice, this strategy effectively promotes the displacement of Palestinians—a policy that can only be described as a form of ethnic cleansing.
Palestinian officials have repeatedly denounced such rhetoric as part of a broader Israeli agenda of forced displacement, particularly in light of the systematic destruction of homes, infrastructure, and agricultural lands throughout Gaza since October 2023.
Trump, standing beside Netanyahu, remarked, 'We've had great cooperation from many countries around Israel. Something good will happen.'
However, regional governments, including Egypt and Jordan, have also rejected the policy as a threat to national security.
Read more: US-'Israel' plan to displace Gaza residents under humanitarian pretext
The timing of Netanyahu's Nobel nomination for Trump has raised eyebrows, especially as the Israeli Prime Minister remains wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over war crimes committed during the war on Gaza.
In November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Security Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of overseeing military policies that amount to collective punishment and crimes against humanity. While the US and 'Israel' have rejected the ICC's jurisdiction, much of the international community has expressed growing outrage at the scale of destruction inflicted on Gaza, making Netanyahu's letter to the Norwegian Nobel Committee all the more absurd.
Trump's envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, is expected to travel to Doha this week to continue ceasefire talks with Qatari and Egyptian mediators. The proposed deal, based on what has been dubbed the 'Witkoff Plan,' includes a 60-day truce, the phased release of captives, Israeli military withdrawals, and negotiations toward a permanent agreement.
Hamas has already confirmed its positive response to the proposal, describing it as 'constructive' and reaffirming its readiness to begin implementation discussions immediately. In contrast, Netanyahu's office has declared Hamas' requested revisions to the proposal as 'unacceptable,' though it nonetheless agreed to dispatch a negotiating team to Doha.
Read more: Gaza ceasefire talks end with 'no breakthrough', to resume in evening
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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, an ally of Trump who has gained a following within the MAGA movement, blasted the agreement on Monday as a failure on the part of Europe's leadership. "Even at first glance, it is obvious to me that this is not an agreement," Orbán said in a video discussion with his party's spokesman. "Donald Trump ate (European Commission President) Ursula von der Leyen for breakfast, that's what happened." Orbán, a frequent EU critic, has been careful not to criticize Trump's administration for its trade policy, instead faulting the bloc for being unable to conclude a comprehensive tariff agreement with Washington. Orbán said that a U.S.-U.K. trade deal, which imposed a blanket 10% tariff on British exports, was more favorable than the one concluded with the EU. "The American president is a heavyweight negotiator, and (von der Leyen) is a featherweight," Orbán said. 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"While the EU may avert a trade war in the short term, it is paying a high price in the long term by abandoning the principles of the multilateral, rules-based world trade system of the World Trade Organization."
