Former President Donald Trump, in an interview with a conservative Israeli media outlet published Monday, urged Israel to “end your war,” mixing bellicose support for the Israeli government with stark warnings that the Jewish state was losing international support and providing “a grim outlook for the world.”
But while Trump had characteristically harsh words towards the president Joe Biden (called Biden”foolish”), offered no prescription for what the United States should do, or what it would do, if elected, to end the war in the Gaza Strip. end or advance the cause of peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
The interview with Israel Hayom, a publication started by conservative American casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, was published on the same day that the Biden administration authorized the Security Council of the United Nations to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
This has also happened as former members of the Trump administration have become more vocal about their policies diverge clearly from that of Biden.
Destroyed buildings inside the Gaza Strip, seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, March 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)Jared KushnerTrump’s son-in-law and former senior White House adviser who led the Trump administration’s diplomatic efforts in the Middle East, was criticized last week for calling the war in Gaza “a a little unlucky” and then added: “but from Israel’s point of view, they would do everything they could to get people out and then clean up the place.”
And David Friedman, who was ambassador to Israel during the Trump administration, criticized the vice president Kamala Harris on social media over the weekend for saying that up to 1.5 million Palestinians crammed into the southern Gaza city of Rafah would have nowhere to go if Israel attacked.
Friedman suggested that the Palestinians are always in Gaza they could emigrate.
“He ‘studied the maps’ and concluded that the people of Rafah have nowhere to go,” Friedman wrote.
“It must have been an awfully small map; it obviously excluded Egypt and other Arab countries.”
Trump did not buy into the expulsion rhetoric, but told Israeli interviewers that he planned to meet Friedman to hear his pitch for the United States to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the country. West Bankoccupied by Israel since 1967.
Trump’s main strategy, however, was a prescription more mixed for the Israeli right:
Israel should end the war in Gaza (“It must end,” he said) and then move quickly toward “peace,” in some form. because “Israel is in trouble.”
“Israel has to be very careful, because it is losing a lot of the world, it is losing a lot of support,” Trump warned.
“We have to finish, we have to do the work. And we must achieve peace, a normal life for Israel and for everyone else.”
The former president also expressed what appeared to be criticism of Israel’s propaganda efforts.
When asked how he would counteract the increase antisemitism during the Gaza war, he responded:
“I think Israel has made a very serious mistake.”
He continued: “These photographs and shots, I mean, moving shots of bombs being thrown at buildings in Gaza. And I said, “oh, that’s a terrible portrait.” It’s a very bad outlook for the world.’”
Trump appeared to blame Israeli military officials for publishing such images of destruction.
“Every night I saw buildings collapsing on people,” Hayom told Israel.
“I would say it was awarded by the Ministry of Defense,” he said, adding:
“I think Israel wanted to show that it’s difficult, but sometimes you shouldn’t do it.”
c.2024 The New York Times Company
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.