US President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff did not mince his words. In a meeting late on Sunday with former hostages and relatives of those still held in Gaza, he told them Israel is drawing out a war the US wants to end, local media reported.
On the eve of the release of Edan Alexander, the last living American held by Hamas, Witkoff spelt out the gulf between his boss and the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“We want to bring the hostages home, but Israel is not willing to end the war. Israel is prolonging it — despite the fact that we don’t see where else we can go and that an agreement must be reached,” Witkoff told the meeting, according to Channel 12 Television, quoting sources who were present.
It was the latest in a series of high-profile and high-stakes snubs from the White House which suggest that Israel’s most important ally is frustrated with its government — and possibly losing interest in its fortunes.
“Trump’s not against Israel, but he doesn’t care about Israel,” said Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli diplomat. “As far as Trump is concerned, Netanyahu has become an irritant and an irritant that doesn’t contribute to the bank account.”
Trump might not have embarked on the open attacks that have characterized his relationship with other leaders fighting a war he wants to end, such as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, but recent policy moves have undermined Israeli security, weakened its diplomatic standing and flown against Israeli defense policy, particularly over how to handle Iran.
Last week, Trump announced a ceasefire deal with the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, which excluded Israel. He described the Houthi rebels as “brave” just days after one of their missiles hit Israel’s main airport, prompting many international airlines to suspend flights. Houthi attacks on Israel have continued.
He previously dismissed Israeli calls for military action against Iran, instead opening talks with Tehran on ending its nuclear program.
Days after the Houthi ceasefire deal, news leaked that the Trump administration had dropped a demand from former US president Joe Biden that linked progress on a Saudi Arabian civilian nuclear program to normalizing relations with Israel.
Saudi Arabia has ruled out normalization while Israel is at war in Gaza. Trump’s move made clear he does not want his hands to be tied as he headed to Riyadh to seal billions of dollars in expected deals.
His first trip to the region since returning to the White House also included visits to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, but not Israel. That conspicuous absence from the presidential itinerary would have been unthinkable in recent decades.
Ilan Baruch, a former Israeli ambassador who now chairs the Policy Working Group, which advocates for a two-state solution, said: “Trump, it seems, has embarked on a bluntly new trajectory.”
“Israel was expecting the Trump administration to stay the course within a paradigm of ‘shared convictions and mutual strategic interests’. Trump is the first president in a generation to put this equation in doubt,” Baruch said.
Strong, long-term support for Israel among much of Trump’s Republican base means Netanyahu is in a better position to hold on to US support than a leader such as Zelenskiy, said Nadav Eyal, a researcher at Columbia University and a commentator with the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth.
“As to how serious the damage is, I would say right now it is not lasting ... not a full-blown crisis yet,” he said. “I suspect that both sides will try to mitigate, negotiate and not make it a public confrontation.”
Still, Netanyahu’s celebration of Israel-US ties at the start of the year, when he was the first foreign leader invited to Trump’s second-term White House, now look premature.
Although Alexander’s release was agreed without Israeli input, Netanyahu responded initially not by thanking Trump, but by in effect claiming credit for it.
“The expected release of [Israel Defense Forces] IDF soldier Edan Alexander without anything in return will be possible due to the vigorous policy that we have led with the backing of President Trump, and thanks to the military pressure of IDF soldiers in the Gaza Strip,” his office said in a statement before his planned release.
He is already facing the fury of hostage families and their supporters, who say he is extending the war — and their suffering — for personal political gain. One, Einav Tsengauker, described the prime minister on Monday as an “angel of death.”
However, Netanyahu’s truculent response to the release of Alexander risks stirring up the anger of a far more potent enemy, whose endless appetite for praise and deference is now the basis of global foreign policy from Beijing to Brussels.
Trump’s post celebrating Alexander’s release spelled out what he wants to see next: “Hopefully this is the first of those final steps necessary to end this brutal conflict. I look very much forward to that day of celebration!”
There is broad support inside Israel for ending the war in return for the release of all hostages, with opinion polls showing more than two-thirds of the country back a deal.
However, those who want to carry on fighting include the leaders of two far-right parties at the heart of Netanyahu’s coalition. That leaves him potentially facing a choice between shoring up his government or Israel’s most important relationship.
“If he wants Trump back on his side, then he needs to do things that would cost him the coalition,” Pinkas said. “If you look at his biography and experience, he should be fully aware of all this. If you look at his behaviour, it’s as if he has no idea what’s going on.”
Emma Graham-Harrison is the Guardian’s chief Middle East correspondent, based in Jerusalem.
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