"Bibi Wants Peace": Trump Ahead Of Meeting With Netanyahu

Ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's White House visit on Monday, US President Donald Trump has claimed that negotiations over his plan to end the war in Gaza are "at their final stages". In an interview with Axios, the US leader said he contended a deal with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as the Arab nations and Hamas, that could open the way for wider peace in the Middle East.

"Everybody has come together to get a deal, but we still have to get it done...The Arab countries were fantastic to work with on this. Hamas is coming with them. They have great respect for the Arab world...The Arab world wants peace, Israel wants peace, and Bibi (Israeli Prime Minister) wants peace," Trump told Axios.

According to Trump, his plan aims at resuming a wider push for peace in the region, apart from ending the war in Gaza.

"If we get this done, it will be a great day for Israel and for the Middle East. It will be the first chance for real peace in the Middle East. But we have to get it done first," Trump said.

All Eyes On Netanyahu

However, Netanyahu has given little reason for optimism in recent days. He pledged in a defiant UN address on Friday to "finish the job" against Hamas, and promised to block a Palestinian state that key Western nations recently recognised.

The Israeli premier also appears reluctant to halt a military offensive in Gaza City from which hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to flee in recent weeks.

It will be Netanyahu's fourth visit to the White House since Trump returned to power in January, as the US president struggles to end a conflict he said he could solve in days. Normally a staunch ally of Netanyahu, Trump has shown recent signs of frustration.

He warned Netanyahu last week against annexing the West Bank, as some of the Israeli premier's cabinet members have urged, and also opposed Israel's recent strike on Hamas members in the key US ally Qatar.

The outcome of the meeting was likely to depend on how much pressure Trump was willing to put on Netanyahu to swallow a deal on which both Israel and Hamas are still not sold, said Natan Sachs, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute.

The two leaders will address a joint news conference at 1:15 pm US Eastern time (1715 GMT) on Monday.