Trump invites Netanyahu to be first foreign leader to visit White House
Donald Trump has invited Benjamin Netanyahu – wanted by the international criminal court for war crimes – to be the first foreign leader to visit the White House.
The invitation was made in a letter from the US president, which invited the Israeli prime minister to come to the White House on 4 February to "discuss how we can bring peace to
Israel and its neighbours, and efforts to counter our shared adversaries".
"It will be my honour to host you as my first foreign leader during my second term," the letter read, as reported by The Guardian.
The meeting is set to take place amid a fragile six-week ceasefire that has brought a temporary pause to 15 months of fighting between Israel and militant group Hamas in Gaza, Reuters reports.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday he wants Egypt to take in Palestinians from the enclave, where much of the population has been displaced by Israel's military onslaught.
"I wish he would take some. We help them a lot, and I'm sure he can help us," Trump said of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, whom he called a "friend."
"I'd like to get them living in an area where they can live without disruption and revolution and violence," Trump said of Palestinians in Gaza.
Trump over the weekend suggested Egypt and Jordan should take in Palestinians from Gaza.
The two countries and other Arab states oppose removing Palestinians from Gaza, in part 0because it is land Palestinians want as part of a future Palestinian state.
The Gaza war was sparked by Hamas' attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants killed 1,200 and took about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's war on Gaza has killed some 47,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry, and led to accusations of genocide and war crimes that Israel denies.
Under the terms of a ceasefire agreed this month, an initial six-week phase is due to see the release of 33 hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.
