In an interview with Axios on Monday, President Trump provided backing for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to escalate in Gaza, suggesting that Israel needed to ramp up the pressure on Hamas.
The report said that Trump stopped short of directly endorsing the Israeli government’s plan to take over Gaza City but “seemed to agree” with Netanyahu’s “argument that more military pressure on Hamas is required.”
Israel’s plans to escalate its genocidal war have faced widespread international condemnation as the humanitarian situation in Gaza is as bad as ever, and Palestinians continue to starve to death every day. But the Trump administration has not wavered in its support for Israel.
Many people inside Israel, including senior military officials, have raised concerns about the plans to escalate in Gaza due to the threat it will pose to the remaining Israeli captives. Trump told Axios that it was always going to be “very rough to get them” because Hamas “are not going to let the hostages out in the current situation,” although Hamas’s long-standing position is that it’s willing to release the remaining captives in exchange for a permanent ceasefire.
Echoing earlier comments, Trump said it was up to Israel what to do next, signaling he will continue providing military aid no matter what Netanyahu chooses to do. The president said it was also up to Israel whether Hamas can remain in Gaza, but said that in his opinion, “they can’t stay there.”
“I have one thing to say: remember October 7, remember October 7,” Trump told Axios.
Trump’s conversation with Axios came a day after he spoke with Netanyahu by phone to discuss Israel’s planned escalation. “The two discussed Israel’s plans to take control of the remaining Hamas strongholds in Gaza to bring an end to the war by securing the release of the hostages and defeating Hamas,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on the call.
According to Israeli media reports, Israel’s plans involve forcibly evacuating Palestinian civilians from Gaza City to the south with the goal of driving them out of Gaza altogether, as Netanyahu and other Israeli officials have made clear that ethnic cleansing is their ultimate goal.
