Trump, Netanyahu meet again as gaps said to narrow in Gaza ceasefire talks

WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump on July 8 met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for a second time in two days, to discuss Gaza as Mr Trump’s Middle East envoy said Israel and Hamas were closing their differences on a ceasefire deal.

Mr Netanyahu departed the White House on the evening of July 8 after just over an hour’s meeting with Mr Trump in the Oval Office, with no press access. The two men also met for several hours over a dinner at the White House on July 7 during the Israeli leader’s third US visit since the President began his second term on Jan 20.

Mr Netanyahu met Vice-President J.D. Vance and then visited the US Capitol on July 8, and is due back in Congress on July 9 to meet US Senate leaders.

He told reporters after a meeting with the Republican House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson that while he did not think Israel’s campaign in the Palestinian enclave was done, negotiators are “certainly working” on a ceasefire.

“We have still to finish the job in Gaza, release all our hostages, eliminate and destroy Hamas’ military and government capabilities,” Mr Netanyahu said.

Shortly after Mr Netanyahu spoke, US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said the issues keeping Israel and Hamas from agreeing had dropped to one from four, and he hoped to reach a temporary ceasefire agreement this week.

“We are hopeful that by the end of this week, we’ll have an agreement that will bring us into a 60-day ceasefire. Ten live hostages will be released. Nine deceased will be released,” Mr Witkoff told reporters at a meeting of Mr Trump’s Cabinet.

A delegation from Qatar, which has been hosting indirect talks between Israeli negotiators and the Hamas Palestinian militant group, met senior White House officials for several hours before Mr Netanyahu’s arrival on July 8, Axios reported, citing a source familiar with the details.

The White House had no immediate comment on the report.

The Gaza war erupted when Hamas attacked southern Israel in October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. A total of 50 hostages remain in Gaza, with 20 believed to be alive.

Israel’s retaliatory war in Gaza has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry. Most of Gaza’s population has been displaced by the war, and nearly half a million people are facing famine within months, according to UN estimates.

Mr Trump had strongly supported Mr Netanyahu, even wading into domestic Israeli politics by criticising prosecutors over a corruption trial against the Israeli leader on bribery, fraud and breach-of-trust charges that Mr Netanyahu denies.

In his remarks to reporters at the US Congress, Mr Netanyahu praised Mr Trump, saying there has never been closer coordination between the US and Israel in his country’s history. REUTERS