Netanyahu: Trump presented the only plan for the Gaza issue that can work
Trump said regarding the Gaza plan that it was "up to Israel" to decide what to do next "in consultation with me."
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFUpdated: FEBRUARY 16, 2025 23:47 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in front of Gazans returning to the north of Gaza (illustrative).(photo credit: Canva, Chaim Goldberg/Flash90, REUTERS/MAHMOUD AL-BASOS)
Trump’s “bold new vision” was the only plan that enabled a different future for both Israel and Gaza, he said.“We have the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House,” Netanyahu said.
Later, on Sunday, Trump said regarding the Gaza plan that it was "up to Israel" to decide what to do next "in consultation with me."
"I told Netanyahu: You can do whatever you want," Trump added.
Netanyahu said that Israel is willing to allow people to leave and that 150,000 people had already left Gaza through bribing Hamas officials.
“The wealthy could leave; others were trapped. Give them an option,” he said. “This is not ethnic cleansing; it’s about giving people agency over their own lives.”
Dismantling Hezbo Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations in Jerusalem, on February 16, 2025. (credit: Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)llah, Defeating Assad
Netanyahu turned to praise the new president of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun, for diligently working to ensure the dismantling of Hezbollah.
He hailed the demise of the Assad regime in Syria as a result of Israel’s efforts to destroy Hezbollah, saying Bashar Assad was only kept in power because of Hezbollah.
“We didn’t get any flowers from Damascus for this, but that’s okay; we can live with it.
“With Syria, we’ve ensured it can no longer be used as a launchpad for attacks on Israel,” he said.
He drew inspiration “from Churchill’s decision during World War II to neutralize the Vichy French fleet to prevent Nazi exploitation. We similarly dismantled Assad’s military capabilities.”
Netanyahu then refocused to call for more action to be taken against Iran, saying Tehran was a threat to global security due to its nuclear program.
He railed against the overreach of international courts, calling the cases against Israel and himself at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, respectively, “a travesty” and said Israel and the United States would do everything to fight them.
“The ICC threatens not just Israel but every democracy,” he told the conference. “If an unelected international body can prosecute soldiers for defending their country, then the right to self-defense is being dismantled.”
