Trump and Netanyahu Relationship Reportedly Fractured

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has claimed that US President Donald Trump no longer cares about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, suggesting their relationship has suffered a deep fracture. Barak pointed to a new framework regarding the Gaza Strip which he says sidelines Israel, as well as Trump’s decision to cancel a planned attack on Iran that was previously reported to be launched jointly by the US and Israel. “The language in the deal is very ambiguous, but the general direction is clear. Israel and its demands have been ignored,” Barak said in an interview with Israeli media outlet KAN. He noted the Gaza framework does not require total disarmament by Hamas, the removal of weapons from Gaza, or the exile of Hamas leaders. “Instead, the deal speaks of stopping the killings and returning to control of 53 per cent of the Gaza Strip, not 65 per cent,” he stated. Barak described the situation as a bitter reality, saying, “The bitter reality is that Trump no longer cares about Netanyahu, and all of this is very worrying.” He assessed that Netanyahu has “completely lost bargaining power” with Trump, and that the US President’s inner circle has also lost trust in the Israeli Prime Minister. Barak further claimed that Hamas fighters still possess “tens of thousands of weapons” without any discussion of efforts to collect them. On the issue of Iran, Barak noted Trump recently told reporters that “Netanyahu will do whatever I order him to do”. He assessed that Israel “has no real ability to resist Trump’s will”, while the Gulf states are pushing in the opposite direction. Trump announced the cancellation of the planned US military strike on Iran on Saturday, stating that Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries had requested time to finalise a peace deal framework.