Trump and Netanyahu are heading for an Oval Office showdown
Both will declare the meeting 'successful,' but the reality may be quite different. On Iran, Trump crossed a Rubicon by ordering direct US military action against nuclear-weapons-related targets in Iran. He may think the strikes were simply a 'one and done' affair, but, if so, he is badly mistaken. Trump put his personal prestige on the line, not to mention America's. Despite his contention that the B-2 bunker-buster raids 'completely and totally obliterated' the targeted nuclear-program sites, much remains to be done.
No one knows that better than Netanyahu, who has focused on the Iranian nuclear threat for over three decades. Although he persuaded (or manoeuvred) Trump into using military force, Trump swerved immediately after receiving favourable reports on the strikes to impose a cease-fire on Israel and Iran. Netanyahu had little choice but to stand down, having achieved two major objectives: getting Trump into the fight and imposing significant, albeit not fatal, damage on Iran's nuclear project. Iran also had little choice, having been pounded by Israel and the US, but to launch merely pro forma retaliation, shake its rhetorical fist in defiance, and hope to escape any additional destruction.
Nonetheless, Netanyahu sees that the time is ripe for further action against Iran, including actions to encourage the domestic opposition to move against the ayatollahs. Iran's air defences are now essentially flat, but the moment will not last forever. Top Iranian commanders and nuclear scientists have been eliminated, but their ranks will reform, and their respective work will resume. The ayatollahs have clearly signalled their continuing resolve by effectively expelling all International Atomic Energy Agency personnel from the country.
The last thing Netanyahu wants is for Trump to throw Tehran an economic or political lifeline. Israel seeks regime change in Iran, and Netanyahu needs at least Trump's acquiescence for Israel to continue deconstructing the remains of Iran's nuclear enterprise. Further US participation would be icing on the cake. By contrast, Trump desperately wants a Nobel Peace Prize. After all, he reasons, Barack Obama received one (which he didn't deserve), so why not Trump?
Trump's Nobel obsession now seems concentrated on Gaza, where the ongoing conflict has intensified since the Israel-Iran ceasefire took effect. He has pressured both Israel and Hamas to reach agreement to effect the return some still-unsettled number of Israeli hostages and remains, in exchange releasing possibly 1,000 Hamas prisoners in Israeli custody, plus a 60-day ceasefire. The sticking point remains Hamas's insistence on a complete end to the war, or, reportedly, a commitment that talks to end the war commence immediately after the hostage/prisoner exchanges.
This sort of framework has been used before, but its durability remains just as doubtful as other post-October 7, 2023 efforts. Trump wants to announce a cease-fire on or before the Monday meeting, but how long it lasts is anyone's guess. Hamas undoubtedly wants relief from Israeli military strikes, and domestic political pressure to secure the release of more hostages has left Netanyahu little manoeuvring room. But, apart from humanitarian objectives regarding the hostages, Israel gains no strategic upside from yet another cease fire. Israel has repeatedly suspended combat operations and withdrawn from already-secured positions in Gaza, and then been forced to re-take them, at considerable human and material costs to the Israeli Defense Forces. Lengthening the war also imposes additional strains on an already stressed Israeli economy.
The collapse of Syria's Assad regime, replaced by former Al-Nusra Front terrorists (now known as Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, or 'HTS'), was undoubtedly a serious setback for Iran. Acceding to Saudi Arabia's requests, Trump lifted US economic sanctions previously imposed against Assad's government, but substantial questions remain whether HTS has actually renounced terrorism.
Its leader, Syria's de facto head of government, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is also an unknown, having shed his combat fatigues for a suit, trimmed his beard, and dropped his nom de guerre for, apparently, his real name. In the meantime, Israel continues military operations inside Syria, in addition to holding onto an extended buffer zone occupied after Assad's fall.
Perhaps nothing concrete regarding Syria will emerge from the Netanyahu-Trump meeting, but the two leaders need a better sense of each other's concerns and objectives. Since the First World War, the Middle East has seen more diplomatic efforts crash and burn than any other geographic hot spot. Iran and Gaza today are unlikely to prove more successful.
Monday's most important outcome in the West Wing will be decisions on the possible further use of US and Israeli military force to achieve key objectives on both fronts.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump ‘open to' Zelensky attending Alaska summit with Putin
Donald Trump has said he will meet with Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday to discuss the war in Ukraine. The Russian president is expected to use the summit to set out his demands for a ceasefire deal, which includes Ukraine giving up two eastern regions and its sovereignty of Crimea. Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday, the US president admitted any peace deal may involve 'some swapping of territories'. Reacting to the announcement, Volodymyr Zelensky said "Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier', and warned that any negotiations must include Kyiv. According to reports, the White House is now considering inviting Mr Zelensky to Alaska. A senior White House official has said that Trump 'remains open to a trilateral summit with both leaders. Right now, the White House is focusing on planning the bilateral meeting requested by President Putin '. A joint statement from European leaders – representing the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Finland and the European Commission – backed a ceasefire but warned that 'international borders must not be changed by force'. Reactions in Kyiv to idea of Ukraine ceding territory range from scepticism to quiet resignation On the streets of Kyiv, reactions to the idea of Ukraine ceding territory to Russia ranged from scepticism to quiet resignation. "It may not be capitulation, but it would be a loss," said Ihor Usatenko, a 67-year-old pensioner, who said he would consider ceding territory "on condition for compensation and, possibly, some reparations." Anastasia Yemelianova, 31, said she was torn: "Honestly, I have two answers to that question. The first is as a person who loves her country. I don't want to compromise within myself," she told the AP. "But seeing all these deaths and knowing that my mother is now living in Nikopol under shelling and my father is fighting, I want all this to end as soon as possible." Others, like Svitlana Dobrynska, whose son died fighting, rejected outright concessions but supported halting combat to save lives. "We don't have the opportunity to launch an offensive to recapture our territories," the 57-year-old pensioner said, "But to prevent people from dying, we can simply stop military operations, sign some kind of agreement, but not give up our territories." Tara Cobham10 August 2025 07:00 Trump to meet Putin in Alaska for Ukraine peace talks 10 August 2025 06:45 Russian drone strike hits civilian bus near Kherson as Ukraine evacuates residents A Russian FPV (first-person-view) drone struck a civilian bus in the suburbs of Kherson on Saturday morning, killing two people and injuring 19 others, local authorities have said. The strike took place around 8am local time. Sixteen people were taken to hospital, with two in serious condition. The victims, aged between 23 and 83, suffered shrapnel and blast injuries. As police recovered the victims' bodies from the bus, a second Russian FPV drone hit the area, injuring three officers with concussions, according to Ukraine's National Police. The attack comes amid escalating Russian strikes across Kherson Oblast. Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said 36 settlements were hit in the past day, leaving one person dead and three injured, including a child. Ukrainian authorities have been evacuating hundreds of residents from the Korabel district of Kherson city, which has been cut off from the rest of the city after Russian forces heavily damaged the only bridge connecting the area last week. According to Politico, only 600 of the 1,800 residents remain in the island district, with at least 200 set to be evacuated on Friday. 'Russians continue to attack the bridge and the area during evacuation,' said Oleksandr Tolokonnikov, deputy head of the Kherson regional administration. Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 06:30 Zelensky warns he will not give up land as Trump to meet Putin in Alaska Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 06:15 Trump's efforts to pressure Russia to end war delivered no progress so far Before Donald Trump announced his summit with Vladimir Putin, his efforts to pressure Russia into stopping the fighting had delivered no progress. The Kremlin's bigger army is slowly advancing deeper into Ukraine at great cost in troops and armour while it relentlessly bombards Ukrainian cities. Exasperated that Putin did not heed his calls to stop bombing Ukrainian cities, Trump had moved up an ultimatum to impose additional sanctions on Russia and introduce secondary tariffs targeting countries that buy Russian oil if the Kremlin did not move toward a settlement. The deadline was Friday. But the White House did not answer questions that evening about possible sanctions after Trump announced the meeting with Putin. Tara Cobham10 August 2025 06:00 Drone attacks cause major flight delays at Russia's Sochi airport Dozens of flights were delayed at Sochi Airport on Saturday following reported drone attacks in southern Russia's Krasnodar Krai, according to a report by The Kyiv Independent. Russia's defence ministry said its air defences shot down 10 drones over the region. In response, airspace over Sochi was closed twice on Friday, with restrictions continuing into the next day. By Saturday morning, 57 flights had been delayed and one cancelled, according to independent outlet Meduza, citing data from a flight-tracking app. The disruption extended beyond Sochi, affecting airports in Krasnoyarsk, Tomsk, Novosibirsk, Novokuznetsk, and Norilsk. Around 1,000 passengers were left waiting, according to Russia's West Siberian Transport Prosecutor's Office. Ukraine has not commented on the reported drone strikes, but Russia regularly grounds flights or shuts airspace in response to Ukrainian drone activity. Last month, at least one Russian airport faced temporary closure nearly every day. Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 05:45 Vance and Lammy meet with senior Ukrainian officials in Kent Senior Ukrainian officials met with foreign secretary David Lammy and the US vice president JD Vance on Saturday for security talks at Chevening House in Kent, ahead of Donald Trump's upcoming summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Andriy Yermak, head of Volodymyr Zelensky's office, and Ukraine's national security and defence council secretary Rustem Umerov attended the meeting, along with European national security advisers. Lammy posted photos from the gathering, describing it as part of efforts to support a just peace for Ukraine. The hours-long talks focused on Trump's proposed peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. A US official said the meeting produced 'significant progress' towards Trump's goal of ending the war, though no concrete agreements were announced. In his evening address, Zelensky called the discussions 'constructive'. 'All our messages were conveyed. Our arguments are being heard. The risks are being taken into account. The path to peace for Ukraine must be determined together – and only together – with Ukraine. This is fundamental.' Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 05:30 Macron says Ukraine's future cannot be decided 'without the Ukrainians' French president Emmanuel Macron has said Ukraine's future must not be decided without the involvement of Ukrainians and Europeans, ahead of Donald Trump's planned summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday. Any deal between Trump and Putin is expected to involve potential land concessions, which Volodymyr Zelensky has firmly rejected. In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, Macron wrote: 'Ukraine's future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians, who have been fighting for their freedom and security for over three years now.' He added that Europe must also be part of any peace solution, as its own security is at stake. 'We remain determined to support Ukraine, working in a spirit of unity and building on the work undertaken within the framework of the Coalition of the Willing,' he said. Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 05:15 Analysis: A Trump-Putin summit will be as useful to Ukraine and democracy as Agent Orange is for gardening Along-overdue summit between the presidents of the United States and the Russian Federation to discuss peace in Ukraine, where nuclear war has been threatened, must be seen as a historic moment for optimism. Except that from London to Langley, Berlin, Canberra and Tokyo, intelligence chiefs will be on tenterhooks wondering whether this is another occasion resembling the meeting between an agent and his handler. There's no evidence that Donald Trump works for Vladimir Putin. But there is ample evidence that the US president favours Putin's agenda. And that he has done all he can to hobble Ukraine while it attempts to defend itself against a Russian invasion of Europe's eastern flank. The Independent's world affairs editor Sam Kiley reports: Tara Cobham10 August 2025 05:00 Zelensky rejects Putin's land-for-ceasefire proposal, warns of repeat invasion Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has firmly rejected Vladimir Putin's proposal for Ukraine to cede territory in exchange for a ceasefire, warning it would only invite future Russian aggression. In his evening address on Saturday, Zelensky said Russia must face consequences for its invasion, pointing to the West's failure to punish Moscow after the 2014 annexation of Crimea as a mistake that led to wider war.' Putin was allowed to take Crimea, and this led to the occupation of Donetsk and Luhansk... Now Putin wants to be forgiven for seizing even more,' Zelensky said. 'We will not allow this second Russian attempt to divide Ukraine. Where there is a second, there will be a third.' His statement comes ahead of a planned 15 August summit in Alaska between Donald Trump and Putin, where the two are expected to discuss a possible ceasefire plan, which would reportedly see Russia halt hostilities in return for Ukraine handing over its eastern territories. Shahana Yasmin
The Guardian
17 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: European leaders urge pressure on Russia ahead of Trump-Putin talks
European leaders stressed the need to keep pressure on Moscow and protect Ukrainian and European security interests after Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin arranged to meet in Alaska next week. A joint statement from French, Italian, German, Polish, British and Finnish leaders and the president of the European commission welcomed the move but noted that the 'path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine' and that negotiations could take place only in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities. It added: 'only an approach that combines active diplomacy, support to Ukraine and pressure on the Russian Federation to end their illegal war can succeed'. They also said a resolution 'must protect Ukraine's and Europe's vital security interests', including 'the need for robust and credible security guarantees that enable Ukraine to effectively defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity'. US vice-president JD Vance met British foreign secretary David Lammy and representatives of Ukraine and European allies on Saturday at Chevening House, a country mansion south-east of London, to discuss Trump's push for peace. A European official confirmed a counterproposal was put forward by European representatives at the Chevening meeting but declined to provide details. The Wall Street Journal said European officials had presented a counterproposal that included demands that a ceasefire must take place before any other steps are taken and that any territory exchange must be reciprocal, with firm security guarantees. 'You can't start a process by ceding territory in the middle of fighting,' it quoted one European negotiator as saying. The White House did not immediately respond when asked about the European counterproposals. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday rejected the idea that his country would give up land to end the war with Russia after Trump suggested a peace deal could include 'some swapping of territories.' Zelenskyy said Ukraine 'will not give Russia any awards for what it has done' and that 'Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.' Later, Zelenskyy called the Chevening meeting constructive: 'All our arguments were heard,' he said in his evening address to Ukrainians. 'The path to peace for Ukraine should be determined together and only together with Ukraine, this is key principle.' French leader Emmanuel Macron stressed the need for Ukraine to play a role in any negotiations: 'Ukraine's future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians, who have been fighting for their freedom and security for over three years now,' he wrote on X after what he said were calls with Zelenskyy, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Starmer. 'Europeans will also necessarily be part of the solution, as their own security is at stake.' On Saturday two people died and 16 were wounded when a Russian drone hit a minibus in the suburbs of the Ukrainian city of Kherson, regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin said. Two others died after a Russian drone struck their car in the Zaporizhzhia region, according to regional governor Ivan Fedorov. Ukraine's air force said it intercepted 16 of the 47 Russian drones launched overnight, while 31 drones hit targets across 15 different locations. It also said it shot down one of the two missiles Russia deployed. Russia's defence ministry said its air defences shot down 97 Ukrainian drones over Russia and the Black Sea overnight and 21 more on Saturday morning.
Sky News
20 minutes ago
- Sky News
Gaza 'injured his soul': Israeli soldier died by suicide two days before he was due to return to duty
Why you can trust Sky News When your son is risking his life fighting in Gaza, you don't expect to hear news he's been killed on a rest period at home. Eliran Mizrahi had served 187 days as a reservist in Gaza since 8 October, before he died by suicide in June last year. His mother Jenny has turned Eliran's childhood bedroom into a shrine. The 40-year-old's combat vest hanging on the wall still has sand in it from Gaza. The cap he was wearing when he died, sits just above it on a shelf laden with memories of his life. Israel is seeing a wave of soldiers like Eliran taking their own lives - five died by suicide just last month. IDF (Israel Defence Forces) investigations have found it is what they have seen and done in Gaza that are the cause, according to reports by the Israeli public broadcaster. Eliran's mother told Sky News her son returned from Gaza a changed man and she fears there will be many more suicides among Israeli soldiers. "He never left Gaza in his mind," says Jenny. "When he came back he couldn't go back to work. He was a great father with a lot of patience. And he lost his patience with his children, with people. "He was very silent. He didn't sleep at night, he had nightmares. We didn't know anything about it. He didn't speak. Whenever we asked him he said everything is okay." Jenny describes Eliran as someone who was happy and friends with everyone. A father of four "with a big heart" and a big smile. But his experience of the war "injured his soul". Initially, he was deployed to clear bodies of people slaughtered by Hamas at the Nova Festival on 7 October and then deployed to Gaza a day later. Eliran was active on social media and shared videos of his time in Gaza. He was commander of a unit of D9 bulldozers that destroyed buildings and tunnel shafts. After his death, his D9 partner, Guy Zaken, told a parliamentary committee they were often shot at and they ran over hundreds of bodies. Yet they filmed themselves smiling and singing to send to their families. Eliran shared some of those videos on social media. Israel has levelled vast parts of Gaza. Eliran's actions were part of a systematic campaign the UN says has damaged or destroyed over 90% of Gaza's homes. Human rights experts warn this could be a war crime. Eliran was pulled out of Gaza after he sustained knee injuries in an RPG (rocket-propelled grenade) attack on his bulldozer. 'The bodies and the blood' He was later diagnosed with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) - we don't know the cause of his trauma but in the end he couldn't live with it. Two days before he was due to return to active duty, he took his own life. "What he saw over there in Gaza injured his soul. You see all the bodies over there and all the blood. It hurts your soul," says Eliran's mother. Israeli media is reporting at least 18 soldiers have taken their own lives so far this year. Thousands are suffering with PTSD. And more and more reservists are quietly refusing to turn up for duty. The IDF says supporting its service members is a top priority and it invests significant resources in doing so, including deploying mental health officers in all military units. Tuly Flint was one of those officers. A clinical social worker and expert in trauma therapy in his professional life, and a lieutenant colonel in the military reserves, he was deployed to offer psychological support to troops who served in Gaza. Last year, after treating many soldiers and becoming exposed to the extreme suffering of Gazans, Tuly came to the conclusion the war had no purpose and it was a crime against humanity. So he refused to continue to serve in the IDF. "At the beginning of the war what we usually saw was simple PTSD. People who talk about the horrors they saw in the first few weeks with the massacre of Hamas," says Tuly. "But since the second month of the war, people started talking about what takes place on the Palestinian side. "Even people that were not talking about Palestinians' rights, or anything like that, they started talking about the fact that they saw bodies of children, of old people, of women." 'You think, are they lying to me' I asked Tuly how soldiers feel hearing Benjamin Netanyahu 's narrative that there is no starvation in Gaza - that the images we see are a lie. The Israeli military bears witness to what is happening in Gaza in a way most of the world, including international journalists, still can't. "When you hear your government and your commanders telling things that are not true, you start thinking, are they lying to me also?" says Tuly. "When you hear your prime minister lying about things that you saw in Gaza, things that you did ... people talk about torching houses, people talk about a 'deadline' - not a metaphor - a deadline when people cross they will be killed no matter if they are children or women ... they see people starving and they also see the chaos." 2:20 After nearly two years of war, the human cost is weighing heavily on Israeli society. A majority of Israelis now believe that only a deal, not military pressure, will bring the remaining hostages home. And the humanitarian crisis unfolding just across the border is becoming a source of public unease. Former military and intelligence chiefs are also now against the war. The Commanders for Israel's Security group (CIS) has argued, in its professional judgement, "Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat to Israel" - and has written to Donald Trump asking him to compel Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war. Tuly Flint says there's an erosion of trust between soldiers and those leading them. "When you come back home and you hear so many people - former chiefs of staff, former heads of the security bodies of Israel - saying 'this war has no aim anymore' ... you say to yourself: 'I hear from former chiefs of staff that I'm killing hostages by waging war and my government is still sending me there?' "When you see the pictures that you've seen with your own eyes and your government says 'no this is a lie, no this is propaganda', this makes you distrust everyone. And when you distrust everyone, why would you ask for help?" The mental and moral burden on soldiers could be about to grow. Despite strong objections from the IDF's chief of staff, Israel is expanding military operations in Gaza with plans to take control of the entire territory. We understand that references to suicide in any context can be difficult for some people. We provide details of support available from the Samaritans where any such references are included. You can find these here: call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@ in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
