US President Donald Trump believes that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is prolonging the war against Hamas in Gaza for political reasons, two Trump administration officials told The Atlantic on Thursday.
According to the report, Trump thinks the IDF’s objectives in Gaza were achieved long ago and that Netanyahu has continued the war to “maintain his own political power,” the officials said.
The two officials also said, according to The Atlantic, that “The White House also believes that Netanyahu is taking steps that interfere with a potential ceasefire deal.”
Despite these claims, the officials said that they don’t believe that Trump would openly blame Netanyahu or make a shift in US policy toward Israel.
The Atlantic quoted another US official who insisted that “there is no significant rupture” between Trump and Netanyahu and that “allies can sometimes disagree, even in a very real way.”
Trump's patience is wearing thin
An additional official said that the president’s patience is wearing thin, mainly with Hamas, not with Netanyahu.
Earlier on Thursday, Trump shared to Truth Social, “The fastest way to end the Humanitarian Crises in Gaza is for Hamas to SURRENDER AND RELEASE THE HOSTAGES!!!”
When asked about the UK’s decision to recognize a Palestinian state, Trump responded that he didn’t think Hamas "should be rewarded" with recognition of Palestinian independence.
The US president reacted similarly to Canada's plan, "Wow! Canada has just announced that it is backing statehood for Palestine. That will make it very hard for us to make a Trade Deal with them. Oh’ Canada!!!" Trump posted.
Trump wants war to end
However, Trump wants the war to end, one of the administration officials and an outside adviser told The Atlantic.
They explained that he is aware of the increasing anger and criticism toward the US over its support for Israel, such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a far-right Georgia Republican who has previously called for an end to US funding to Israel, and on Monday, became the first Republican in Congress to label the situation in Gaza a “genocide.”
Greene stated that, "It’s the most truthful and easiest thing to say that Oct 7th in Israel was horrific and all hostages must be returned, but so is the genocide, humanitarian crisis, and starvation happening in Gaza.
“He just really wants these stories to stop being on TV,” the adviser told The Atlantic.