US President Donald Trump has invited Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House in the “near future”, the prime minister’s office said on Monday, soon after Trump said Israel should maintain a strong and true dialogue with Syria.

A visit to the White House would mark the Israeli prime minister’s fifth since Trump returned to office in January.
The two leaders have publicly projected a close relationship, though US and Israeli sources have said Trump has at times expressed frustration with Netanyahu.

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The prime minister’s office said Netanyahu and Trump discussed disarming Hamas and demilitarising Gaza. Trump in September announced a plan to end the Gaza war and a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been in place since October.
Trump earlier said in a statement that it was very important that Israel maintained a “strong and true dialogue” with neighbouring Syria, and that “nothing takes place that will interfere with Syria’s evolution into a prosperous state”.
The tail of a shell lies on the ground at the site of an Israeli military operation in the southern Syrian village of Beit Jin on Friday. Photo: AFP
The tail of a shell lies on the ground at the site of an Israeli military operation in the southern Syrian village of Beit Jin on Friday. Photo: AFP
Syria does not formally recognise Israel, which has occupied more Syrian territory since December 2024.

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