US and Israel not 100 Per Cent in Agreement over West Bank; Trump
USA – Donald Trump on Monday said that US and Israel do not agree 100% over West Bank.
“We have had a discussion, big discussion, for a long time on the West Bank, and I wouldn’t say we agree on the West Bank 100%, but we’ll come to a conclusion,” Trump said when asked if he is concerned about Israeli settler violence in the West Bank and whether he had conveyed a message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the occupied territory.
“It’ll be announced at an appropriate time, but he will do the right thing,” he said, referring to Netanyahu, who was standing next to him during a joint press conference following their meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
Israeli forces and illegal settlers have killed at least 1,103 Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, injured nearly 11,000 and detained around 21,000 since October 2023, Palestinian figures showed.
In a landmark opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
US Urges Netanyahu to Change West Bank Policies
US President Donald Trump and his top advisers asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to change Israel’s policies in the occupied West Bank, the Axios news site reported Monday.
Citing a US official and another source, Axios said it came during Monday’s meeting between Trump and Netanyahu along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in the US state of Florida.
According to the report, the US official said the White House thinks a violent escalation in the West Bank would undermine efforts to implement the Gaza peace agreement and prevent the expansion of the Abraham Accords before the end of Trump’s term.
Trump and his team expressed concern about the situation in the West Bank and asked Netanyahu to avoid provocative steps and “calm things down,” the sources said, according to Axios.
They also raised the issues of settler violence against Palestinian civilians, the financial instability of the Palestinian Authority and Israeli settlements expansion, said the sources.
“Netanyahu spoke very strongly against settler violence and said he is going to take more action,” the source with knowledge was quoted as saying by Axios.
After meeting with Netanyahu, Trump told reporters Monday that the US and Israel do not agree “100%” on the West Bank but will ultimately reach a conclusion.
“We have had a discussion, big discussion, for a long time on the West Bank, and I wouldn’t say we agree on the West Bank 100%, but we’ll come to a conclusion,” he said when asked if he is concerned about Israeli settler violence in the West Bank and whether he had conveyed a message to Netanyahu regarding the occupied territory.
“It’ll be announced at an appropriate time, but he will do the right thing,” he said, referring to Netanyahu.
Phase 2 of Gaza Ceasefire
Trump and Netanyahu also discussed the steps to advance to the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire plan, including a full Israeli withdrawal and the disarmament of the Palestinian group Hamas.
When asked if Israel will withdraw its forces before Hamas is fully disarmed, Trump said Hamas would be given a “very short period of time” to disarm under an agreement, without offering a specific timeline.
“They’re going to be given a very short period of time to disarm, and we’ll see how that works out,” he said.
Trump said US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and adviser Jared Kushner would oversee the process from Washington’s side.
“It’s going to be horrible for them,” he said, warning that Hamas would face serious consequences if it does not comply with the plan.
Despite the ceasefire agreement taking effect in October, Israel continues to keep Gaza’s crossings largely closed, preventing the entry of mobile homes and reconstruction materials and worsening the humanitarian crisis affecting over 2 million people.
Palestinian officials say that at least 414 people in Gaza have been killed since the ceasefire.
