Netanyahu to head to Washington next week as Trump presses for Gaza ceasefire

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WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for talks at the White House next Monday, according to two U.S. administration officials.

The visit comes as the U.S. leader has begun stepping up his push on the Israeli government to broker a ceasefire and hostage agreement and bring about an end to the war in Gaza.

The officials were not authorized to comment publicly on a visit that hasn’t been formally announced and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Netanyahu’s visit comes after Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer’s visit to Washington this week for talks with senior administration officials on a Gaza ceasefire, Iran and other matters.

The president in public comments has signaled he’s turning his attention to bringing a close to the fighting between Israel and Hamas, since the ceasefire to end 12 days of fighting between Israel and Iran took hold a week ago.

Trump on Friday told reporters, “We think within the next week we’re going to get a ceasefire” in Gaza, but didn’t offer any further explanation for his optimism.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt earlier on Monday said Trump and administration officials were in constant communication with Israeli leadership and bringing about an end to the Gaza conflict is a priority for Trump.

“It’s heartbreaking to see the images that have come out from both Israel and Gaza throughout this war, and the president wants to see it end,” Leavitt added. “He wants to save lives.”

The timing of the visit was first reported by Axios.

Trump will embrace Netanyahu as he pushes back against skeptical questions from Democratic lawmakers and others about how far U.S. and Israeli strikes have set back Iran’s nuclear program.

A preliminary report issued by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, meanwhile, said the strikes did significant damage to the Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan sites, but did not totally destroy the facilities.

Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said on CBS’ Face the Nation Sunday that the three Iranian sites with “capabilities in terms of treatment, conversion and enrichment of uranium have been destroyed to an important degree.” But, he added, “some is still standing” and that because capabilities remain, “if they so wish, they will be able to start doing this again.” He said assessing the full damage comes down to Iran allowing inspectors access.

Trump in recent days has also inserted himself into Israeli domestic affairs, calling for charges against Netanyahu in his ongoing corruption trial to be thrown out.

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Trump’s in a social media post last week condemned the trial as a “WITCH HUNT,” and vowed that the United States will be the one who “saves” Netanyahu from serious corruption charges.

The decision by Trump to plunge himself into one of Israel’s most heated debates has unnerved some in its political class.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration on Monday approved a new half-billion-dollar arms sale to Israel to resupply its military with bomb guidance kits for precision munitions.

The State Department said the sale is worth $510 million. It includes more than 7,000 guidance kits for two different types of Joint Direct Attack Munitions, or JDAMs.

The deal is relatively small given that the U.S. provides Israel with more than $3 billion annually in military aid. But Israel has relied on JDAMs and other related U.S. weaponry in its war against Hamas in Gaza and its recent strikes against Iran.

“The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defence capability,” the department said in a statement. “This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives.”

— AP writer Matthew Lee contributed reporting.