Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that President Trump has invited him to visit the White House, which would mark the Israeli leader’s fourth visit to Washington this year as the Trump administration continues to strongly back Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza and other military action across the region.
Netanyahu said the visit will take place on September 29, three days after he is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly in New York. His announcement came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrapped up a two-day visit to Israel.
President Trump was asked on Tuesday about Israel’s offensive on Gaza City, which is happening amid a famine in the city due to the Israeli siege. While the US is supporting the assault by providing military aid and political support, Trump claimed ignorance.
When asked if he supported the start of Israel’s ground offensive, Trump said, “Well, I have to see, I mean, I don’t know too much about it. I can tell you that if they put the hostages in front of them, Hamas, as protection, they call them bodyguards, Hamas is going to have hell to pay.”
A day earlier, Hamas rejected claims President Trump made about Hamas bringing the Israeli captives above ground, saying his comments show a “blatant bias in favor of Zionist propaganda.” Hamas also said that the US “knows that Netanyahu is sabotaging the chances of any agreement, most recently by attempting to assassinate the negotiating delegation in Qatar while they were discussing Trump’s final deal.”
Trump has claimed that he was not notified of Israel’s plans to bomb Qatar, but according to a report from Axios, Netanyahu informed him ahead of the strikes, and Trump did not express opposition. Rubio also offered no criticism of the attack during his visit to Israel.
