Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to become the first foreign leader to meet with President Donald Trump during his second term with a trip to the White House next week.
A White House official confirmed to NBC News that Trump had extended an invitation to Netanyahu and that he accepted. Netanyahu’s office said they agreed to meet Feb. 4.
“I look forward to discussing how we can bring peace to Israel and its neighbors, and efforts to counter our shared adversaries,” Trump wrote in a letter to Netanyahu on Tuesday.
Trump had previewed his plans to meet with Netanyahu on Monday telling reporters that Netanyahu would be coming to Washington to meet with him “in the not too distant future.”
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Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire deal this month after 15 months of war that has killed thousands of people in the Gaza Strip, displaced Palestinians and left uncertainty about the future of hostages held captive by Hamas.
Trump had said he wanted Jordan and Egypt to accept more Palestinian refugees as part of an effort to “clean out” Gaza, comments that were welcomed by ultranationalist Israeli politicians.
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, met with Netanyahu in Israel on Jan. 11, days before the deal was finalized.
Witkoff is making his way to Israel this week to discuss the ceasefire and other regional issues in his first visit to the Middle East since Trump took office for a second term. He has said publicly that he intends to enter the Gaza Strip during his trip.
Trump spoke by phone last week with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in his first call with a foreign leader after he began his second term.
Trump has suggested that his first overseas trip could be to the United Kingdom or Saudi Arabia. He told reporters Monday, “We’ll make that determination over the next week.” His first trip abroad during his first term was to Saudi Arabia.
Netanyahu was last at the White House in July to meet with President Joe Biden. He also addressed lawmakers at a joint session on Capitol Hill.
During that visit, Netanyahu drew comparisons between the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack and the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in 1941 and took aim at people protesting the war in his congressional address. He also thanked Trump, who at the time was seeking a return to the White House.
Raf Sanchez and Yarden Segev contributed.
