U.S. President Donald Trump on the 29th local time met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss how to implement a Gaza cease-fire and peace plan.
Trump began talks with Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago resort at his home in Palm Beach, Florida, that day. On the U.S. side, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner attended.
In front of reporters, Trump said, "We've already made considerable progress," adding, "We talked for about five minutes and have already solved three tough issues."
Earlier, as he greeted Netanyahu at the resort entrance, Trump said, "We will move the second phase of the Gaza war cease-fire agreement forward as quickly as possible." However, he emphasized, "To do that, Hamas must be disarmed."
The second phase of the cease-fire agreement includes disarming Hamas, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the establishment of a new Palestinian government led by technocrats, the formation of an International Stabilization Force (ISF) to handle Gaza's security and public order, and the start of Gaza reconstruction. Trump said of the timing for Gaza's reconstruction, "It will begin very soon."
The Gaza war has entered its third year since it broke out, and a cease-fire began after Israel and Hamas agreed to a cease-fire and peace plan that Trump proposed in Oct., with many Middle Eastern countries backing it. But sporadic clashes and delays in implementing the cease-fire have continued, raising concerns the war could resume. That is why attention is on whether the talks will produce a concrete agreement on carrying out phase two of the cease-fire.
Trump also took a hard line on Iran. "I heard Iran is trying to rebuild its missile program," he said, warning, "If they do, we will bring them down." He then proposed that Iran come to the table while saying that if it restarts its nuclear weapons program, the United States and Israel would "strike immediately."
Trump also addressed his request to Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog to pardon Netanyahu, who is on trial at home on corruption charges, saying, "He is a heroic wartime prime minister," and asking, "How could I not ask?" He added, "I spoke with the Israeli president and was told the matter is in progress."