Palm Beach, Florida (TDI): US President Donald Trump is set to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to push forward on the stalled Gaza ceasefire and discuss Israel’s concerns over Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran.
Netanyahu confirmed earlier this month that Trump had invited him for talks at Mar-a-Lago, although the White House has not officially confirmed the meeting. The discussions are expected to cover the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire, as well as security issues related to Iran and Lebanon, according to Reuters.
The October ceasefire agreement, brokered by Washington, called for Israel to withdraw from Gaza and for Hamas to disarm and step aside from governance. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently said Washington hopes to implement a transitional administration, a Board of Peace and a technocratic Palestinian body, to govern Gaza before deploying the international security force mandated by a November 17 UN Security Council resolution.
However, tensions remain high. Hamas has refused to disarm and has not returned the remains of the last Israeli hostage, while Israel maintains forces in roughly half of Gaza. Both sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire. Israeli strikes have killed over 400 Palestinians, mostly civilians, since October, while Palestinian militants have killed three Israeli soldiers. Israel has warned it will resume military action if Hamas does not comply peacefully.
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In Lebanon, a US-backed ceasefire from November 2024 ended more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, with a requirement for the group to disarm in areas south of the Litani River. Israel says disarmament progress has been slow and continues near-daily strikes to prevent Hezbollah from rebuilding its forces.
Read More: Nothing Wrong in Trump’s Gaza Idea: Netanyahu
Iran has also been active, conducting missile exercises twice this month following its 12-day conflict with Israel in June. Netanyahu has said Israel does not seek confrontation with Iran but plans to raise Tehran’s activities during talks with Trump. In June, Trump ordered US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites but has since opened discussions for a potential deal with Tehran.
