https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/trump-netanyahu-israel-praise-566d399f?mod=hp_lead_pos10
Relations between President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have had plenty of ups and downs. As the two leaders prepare for a White House visit set for next week, things are decidedly on the upswing.
Trump has showered Netanyahu with praise for leading a 12-day assault on Iran aimed at setting back Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, a conflict the U.S. joined by launching bunker-busting airstrikes on underground Iranian uranium-enrichment sites.
Now the White House has renewed its push for a halt to the war in Gaza. In a Tuesday evening social-media post, Trump said Israel had agreed to the “necessary conditions” for a 60-day cease-fire with Hamas, a goal likely to come up in his meeting with Netanyahu.
“I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Since the Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran, Trump has weighed in on Israel’s domestic affairs, urging Israeli authorities to drop charges against Netanyahu that accuse him of corruption, fraud and breach of trust. Netanyahu denies wrongdoing. The calls represent rare interference by a U.S. leader in a foreign country’s domestic judicial process.
“Bibi and I just went through HELL together,” Trump wrote on Truth Social over the weekend, using Netanyahu’s nickname. “Bibi could not have been better, sharper, or stronger in his LOVE for the incredible Holy Land. Anybody else would have suffered losses, embarrassment, and chaos!”
Trump has called the case against Netanyahu a political witch hunt and compared it to his own legal issues. Trump was found guilty of falsifying business records by a New York court last year and also found liable for sexual abuse in a civil case. Trump has denied wrongdoing and called both the cases against him disgraceful.
Trump’s decision to add U.S. forces to the air campaign against Iran and then to champion Israel’s leader reflects the president’s affinity—in military and political affairs—for leaders he sees as winners.
Except that both have made clear that any "cold" points were a ruse to throw their enemies off.
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