President Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel are expected to meet at the White House on Monday to discuss the latest U.S.-backed plans for postwar Gaza, which they hope could pave the way to ending the two-year-old conflict in the territory.
It will be their fourth meeting in Washington since Mr. Trump’s return to power in January. Each raised hopes for a cease-fire, but none decisively ended the fighting.
This time, the leaders will meet amid international efforts to develop concrete proposals for governing Gaza once the war ends. The Trump administration is weighing one idea pitched by Tony Blair, the former British prime minister, while France and several Arab governments have offered their own plans.
The meeting follows a week in which Israel’s international isolation deepened, as Britain, France and other European countries announced they would recognize a Palestinian state, over Israeli objections.
A longtime champion of Israel, Mr. Trump, too, has voiced impatience with the war, which will enter its third year in October. He also said he “will not allow” Israel to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, which many Palestinians hope will be part of a future state.
Last week, Mr. Trump met in New York with the leaders of Arab and Muslim-majority countries to discuss his administration’s plan for a postwar Gaza. But it is not clear what leverage Mr. Trump is willing to use if Mr. Netanyahu resists the latest proposal to end the war and usher in a new government for Gaza.
Vice President JD Vance said Sunday that there was a “complicated negotiation” going on among Arab leaders, Israel and the Trump administration. While cautiously optimistic about a breakthrough, Mr. Vance added that the deal could always “get derailed at the very last minute.”
In previous negotiations, Mr. Netanyahu has opted to press on with the war against Hamas rather than compromise. His far-right coalition allies hope to control Gaza indefinitely and rebuild Jewish settlements there.
On Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu said he hoped Israel could “make it a go” on Mr. Trump’s proposal. “We’re working on it; it’s not been finalized yet,” he said in an interview with Fox News.
He suggested that Israel would be willing to grant amnesty to Hamas members if they ended the war and released the hostages.
A delegation of Israeli settler leaders was in the United States on Sunday seeking a meeting with Mr. Netanyahu to press him to defy Mr. Trump’s warning on annexation. Along with other right-wing Israelis, they pushed for Israel to annex the territory after several European countries recognized a Palestinian state last week.
The war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas led a surprise attack on Israel that killed about 1,200 people and saw hundreds taken hostage. Israel launched a counterattack in Gaza that has now killed over 65,000 people, including thousands of children, according to Gaza health officials. Their count does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
Hamas said on Sunday that it had yet to formally receive a copy of the latest cease-fire proposal. Negotiations have been at a standstill since Israel bombed Qatar on Sept. 9 in an attempt to assassinate Hamas’s top leadership in the Persian Gulf nation, a brazen attack that drew international condemnation.
The armed group has fought a determined guerrilla war in Gaza, prompting some criticism from Palestinians for not reaching a cease-fire with Israel to spare them further death and destruction.
Israeli forces are now sweeping through Gaza City, forcing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to flee for their lives. Many have been displaced multiple times over the past two years, which have become a seemingly endless nightmare of fear, hunger and bombardment.
The war has shattered Israel’s global standing: Mr. Netanyahu is wanted by the International Criminal Court on allegations of war crimes; several of Israel’s traditional allies recognized a Palestinian state over Israeli objections; and even ordinary Israelis traveling abroad encounter protests and harassment.
Despite the toll on Gaza and its residents, the war in Gaza has not forced Hamas to surrender or to release the remaining hostages held in the territory. At least 20 living captives are still being held, according to Israel, along with the bodies of roughly 25 others.
Mr. Netanyahu has responded to his critics with defiance, arguing that Israel has gone above and beyond in protecting civilians in Gaza by issuing evacuation orders before attacking.
In a speech to the United Nations General Assembly last week, Mr. Netanyahu called his opponents “weak-kneed leaders" who had given way to “antisemitic mobs.”
Nadav Shtrauchler, a former adviser to Mr. Netanyahu and an Israeli political analyst, said the prime minister was already looking ahead to the next elections in the country, expected next year.
That might give Mr. Netanyahu incentive to agree to Mr. Trump’s proposal and “wind down” the campaign in Gaza, even if it rattled his government and prompted some backlash from the right, he said.
“He’s looking for a way out of the situation,” Mr. Shtrauchler said. “This might well be the formula that allows him to do so.”