The outcome of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s meeting with US President Trump is believed to be pivotal in the next steps toward a permanent Gaza ceasefire.
The future of the Gaza ceasefire deal rests on the outcome of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with US President Donald Trump scheduled for Tuesday, Axios has reported, citing three Israeli officials.
Indirect negotiations on the second phase of the deal were supposed to begin in Doha on Monday. The next phase was expected to lead to a permanent ceasefire and Israel’s full withdrawal from Gaza.
Gaza deal’s future hangs on Trump-Netanyahu meeting https://t.co/GD1GLiWP0D
— Axios (@axios) February 2, 2025
“The real serious negotiations over phase two will only begin after Bibi meets Trump,” a senior Israeli official told Axios. “Nothing meaningful will happen before that.”
According to Axios, Israeli officials said that Netanyahu was “waiting to see where Trump stands” on the second phase of the deal “before he makes any decisions.
The news site said families of the detainees as well as Israeli negotiators were concerned that the Israeli leader would not “follow through to the second phase as he fights for political survival.”
The officials believed that Netanyahu “hopes he’ll be able to influence Trump’s thinking and convince him to endorse his plans for the war in Gaza,” the report noted.
‘Worrying Sign’ – Netanyahu Delays Ceasefire Talks until after Trump Meeting
Second Stage
Netanyahu, who arrived in Washington on Sunday evening, spoke on the phone with White House envoy Steve Witkoff on Saturday, the Prime Minister’s office said in a statement.
“They agreed that the negotiations on the second stage of the hostages deal will begin at their meeting in Washington this Monday, the 16th day of the agreement, within the framework of which they will discuss the Israeli positions,” the statement noted.
KAN: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has arrived in Washington and is scheduled to meet on Monday with Steve Witkoff, U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, to discuss negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire agreement. pic.twitter.com/zXlSV7EAmr
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) February 2, 2025
The office further noted that Witkoff will speak with Qatar’s Prime Minister as well as the director of Egyptian intelligence, who are mediators in the ceasefire talks.
Witkoff “will then discuss with the Prime Minister steps to advance the negotiations, including dates for the departure of delegations to the talks,” the statement added.
Netanyahu is the first foreign leader to be invited by Trump to visit the White House since his inauguration.
Mossad Meeting Canceled
Before boarding his plane on Sunday, the prime minister told reporters that his meetings in Washington “will deal with important, critical issues facing Israel and the region.”
Prime Minister Netanyahu before taking off for an official visit in Washington:
“I’m leaving for a very important meeting with President Trump in Washington.
The fact that this would be President Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his inauguration is telling. pic.twitter.com/IeFwm4uS8I
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) February 2, 2025
This includes “victory over Hamas, achieving the release of all our hostages, and dealing with the Iranian terror axis in all its components,” an “axis” he claims “threatens the peace of Israel, the Middle East and the entire world.”
Netanyahu canceled a planned meeting with Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and other senior negotiators on Saturday, instead sending his military secretary, Roman Gofman, to inform them of the delay.
Families Concerned over Delay
The families of Israeli captives have accused Netanyahu and his government of attempting to obstruct the detainee exchange deal with Hamas, Anadolu reported.
“Netanyahu is trying to hinder the prisoner exchange agreement,” the families said during a press conference organized by the families near the Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv on Saturday.
The statements came in response to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who claimed that the war in Gaza would resume immediately after the completion of the first phase of the agreement.
Freed Israeli detainee Keith Siegel says Al-Qassam provided him with food, medicine & medical care—while blaming Israel for delaying negotiations. Full story: https://t.co/Um8hTgwdVI pic.twitter.com/uX67aMsK1W
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) February 3, 2025
The families said they were “extremely concerned,” and made “another appeal to President Trump, as Netanyahu and his ministers are trying to derail and obstruct the agreement.”
Grateful for the release of some of the captives in the first phase of the deal, the families however criticized the Israeli leadership, saying that the remaining hostages had been “left in captivity for too long due to irresponsible political calculations.”
(PC, Anadolu)
