White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is interested in visiting President Donald Trump after U.S. airstrikes last week destroyed Iranian nuclear sites, resulting in a ceasefire between the Middle East adversaries.
"There isn't a date, but the prime minister has expressed interest in coming to the White House to meet with the president and come to Washington," Leavitt said at a press briefing that aired live on Newsmax and the Newsmax2 free online streaming platform.
"The president is obviously very open to that, but we don't have a date," she said. "When we do, we'll let you all know."
A squadron of U.S. B-2 Spirit bombers on Saturday night struck Iranian nuclear sites in Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan to thwart Tehran's ambitions of obtaining a nuclear weapon. The strikes followed daily bombings by Israel on Iranian nuclear and military locations, and Trump announced a ceasefire Monday to end the 12-day conflict.
"There is no doubt that both sides have a shared interest in holding a 'victory party' after the war with Iran," a senior Israeli official said, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Two key issues would likely be discussed should Trump and Netanyahu meet, the Post reported. The first would be a hostage deal with Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists, who still have 50 hostages in the Gaza Strip following its terrorist attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
The second would be expanding the Abraham Accords, the signature foreign policy achievement of Trump's first term that established diplomatic ties between Israel and several Arab nations.
Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff told Newsmax on Wednesday that the U.S. has been talking with other countries about joining the Abraham Accords and that "we expect to have a bunch of announcements in the coming weeks, maybe a month or so."
News of a potential visit to the White House also came after Trump on Wednesday called for Israel to pardon Netanyahu or cancel his trial on corruption charges. Netanyahu was indicted in 2019 in Israel on charges of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust — charges to which he has pleaded not guilty and has denied.
Netanyahu on Thursday requested a two-week hiatus in his trial testimony, The Times of Israel reported, with defense attorney Amit Hadad stating that the prime minister must devote his time to "diplomatic, national, and security issues of the first order," in the wake of the conflict with Iran.
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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