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Trump Forced Israel to Surrender; Why Isn’t He Receiving the Blame?
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC, Sept. 15, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Tom Brenner
Shortly after the Gaza war began, I reminded readers that US presidents — not Israeli prime ministers — end Israel’s wars. Predictably, President Joe Biden ended Israel’s war in Lebanon, and President-elect Donald Trump stopped the fighting in Gaza.
While Jewish Democrats welcomed the release of hostages, they couldn’t help but revel in the discomfort of Trump’s Jewish supporters, watching their carefully constructed myth of the “most pro-Israel president in history” unravel. The leader they idolized as someone who would never pressure Israel forced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — known for his staunch resistance to outside influence — into surrendering. Ironically, Trump achieved what his supporters falsely accused Biden of doing: preventing Israel’s destruction of Hamas.
Trump demanded that a deal be struck before his inauguration or there would be “hell to pay.” He never said what kind of deal he supported or what the penalty would be — but his supporters assumed the message was directed at Hamas. Instead, Israel is paying the price, as it always does, because the US has leverage over the Jews and not their enemies. Anyone with an honest appraisal of Trump knows that he did not care about Netanyahu’s political future or Israel’s for that matter; he wanted to claim the mantle of peacemaker and win a Nobel Prize.
If Trump’s supporters didn’t get the message from the hostage deal, he reinforced it by demanding that Israel complete its withdrawal from Lebanon in accordance with the ceasefire agreement. Biden reportedly had considered granting Israel an extension to finish cleaning up and giving the Lebanese army the chance to deploy. Trump, however, clearly doesn’t care any more about the threat to Israel from Hezbollah than the ongoing danger of Hamas if it interferes with his legacy.
Some of Trump’s biggest Jewish supporters were in such denial of Trump’s betrayal they tried to blame his negotiator, Steve Witkoff, who forced Netanyahu to show up on Shabbat to meet him to receive the president-elect’s message. Witkoff was touted for being a Jew when he was appointed, but was suspected of freelancing in collaboration with the Biden administration and the Qataris, with whom he has business relations, to strong-arm the prime minister to accept a deal that 24 hours earlier was considered by Netanyahu a threat to Israel’s future. It was preposterous that any Trump minion would act without his approval, and the conspiracy theory collapsed when the president-elect proudly claimed credit for the “EPIC” deal.
Incidentally, some Biden bashers were convinced that the president would take some Obama-like action to undermine Israel as late as his final day in office. Instead, his administration lifted restrictions on weapons that had been held up. The surprises they predicted would occur post-election proved to be steps to help rather than harm Israel.
Meanwhile, in their belief that Trump was Israel’s greatest friend, his Jewish supporters shrugged off his antisemitic remarks, his support for white supremacists (some of whom he just pardoned), repeated complaints about Jewish ingratitude for his pro-Israel policies, solicitation of Arab and Muslim Americans when he thought he might need them in Michigan, and more. Now, they must reckon with his duplicity.
Trump’s track record shows that he cares about Trump — Israel’s welfare and Jewish interests are secondary to his personal ambitions. It does help Israel that he clearly does not like Palestinians and understands that jihadists are a threat — first and foremost to the United States.
Adding to the hypocrisy, after railing against Qatar’s nefarious actions for more than a year, MAGA Jews have been mostly silent about Trump’s nomination of Pam Bondi to be attorney general. She failed to disclose her work as a lobbyist for Qatar in her official nomination documents. When asked about it in a congressional hearing, Bondi failed to answer why she didn’t mention the job, but said, “I am very proud of the work that I did. It was a short time and I wish that it had been longer, for Qatar.”
Understanding that currying favor is the prerequisite to any relationship with Trump, Netanyahu went groveling to Mar-a-Lago during the election and bit the bullet on the hostage deal (though he has twisted himself in knots to try to prove he didn’t surrender) in the hope that it would pay dividends later. One supposition is that Netanyahu’s concession will win Trump’s approval for taking military action against Iran. The idea is reinforced by the anti-Iranian remarks made by Trump and his advisers, but may be a miscalculation given the president’s clear objective set out in his inaugural speech in which he took credit for the hostage release: “My proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and unifier.” A war with Iran would directly contradict his aspirations for a Nobel Prize.
Showing loyalty to Trump paid immediate dividends on inauguration day, when Trump began dismantling the Biden legacy. Among the blizzard of executive orders and rescissions of Biden’s actions were the lifting of sanctions on Jewish settlers and reinstating restrictions on staff of the International Criminal Court.
Trump also ordered the suspension of US foreign assistance programs for 90 days while they are reviewed for alignment with his policy goals. That has been interpreted as a precursor to cutting aid to the Palestinians and UNRWA. The order does not apply to Israel, and, despite the isolationist slant of the administration and opposition to foreign assistance in general, Trump is not only expected to continue support for Israel but to end the embargo on the transfer of 2,000-pound bombs imposed by Biden.
Trump’s focus on Saudi-Israeli normalization is yet another example of his peacemaking ambitions. Though Biden laid the groundwork for these discussions, Trump is poised to take full credit for any breakthrough — a move that could greatly benefit Israel while burnishing his legacy.
Though his Jewish supporters refuse to admit it, Trump’s actions often harmed Israel in his first term — while also doing a great deal to legitimately earn their praise. The past week is proof that his second term will very likely lead to similar results for Israel.
Mitchell Bard is a foreign policy analyst and authority on US-Israel relations who has written and edited 22 books including: The Arab Lobby, Death to the Infidels: Radical Islam’s War Against the Jews, and After Anatevka: Tevye in Palestine.
The post Trump Forced Israel to Surrender; Why Isn’t He Receiving the Blame? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Series About Dutch Jewish Woman in Nazi-Occupied Amsterdam Premieres at Venice Film Festival
Venice, 82nd Venice International Film Festival 2025 – Day 7, Photocall for the film “Etty.” Pictured are Hagai Levi – Director, Julia Windischbauer, Sebastian Koch, Claire Bender, and Leopold Witte. Photo: Pool Photo Events 06IPA/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
A six-part television series inspired by the true story of a Dutch Jewish woman who wrote diaries and letters in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam made its world premiere out of competition on Sunday at the 82nd Venice Film Festival.
The Dutch and German-language drama series “Etty” is from Emmy Award-winning Israeli director and creator Hagai Levi, the visionary behind “The Affair,” “Our Boys,” and the remake of Ingmar Bergman’s “Scenes from a Marriage,” which he premiered four years ago at the Venice Film Festival. Levi also created the Israeli television series “BeTipul,” which was remade around the world as “In Therapy” and “In Treatment.” He attended the “Etty” premiere at Venice with the show’s cast, including lead stars Julia Windischbauer and Sebastian Koch.
“Etty” is inspired by the life and diaries of Dutch-Jewish writer Etty Hillesum, who chronicled for 18 months her experiences living in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam. She refused to go into hiding and wrote from Amsterdam as well as the Westerbork transit camp. She was deported and murdered in the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1943 at age 29. Her diary entries and letters were published in 1979 and have gained global recognition. They have since been published in 18 languages.
“In Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, 27-year-old Jewish Etty Hillesum begins therapy,” reads a synopsis of the series “Etty,” provided by the Venice Film Festival. “What starts as personal exploration becomes a spiritual awakening, documented in her diaries. Guided by psycho-chirologist Julius Spier, her mentor and lover, she undergoes a radical inner transformation. She’ll discover that even when all is taken, one can remain free within.”
Levi said he discovered a book about Hillesum’s diaries roughly 10 years ago and “after breathless reading, I felt I had found something I could talk about for the rest of my life.” He explained that Hillesum’s diary entries also helped him during his own personal journey and exploration of his Jewish faith.
“I grew up a pious Orthodox Jew. At 20, I left that world forcefully, violently, abandoning questions of God, faith, and meaning,” he said in a director’s statement shared by the festival. “I tried to fill the resulting void — and depression that came with it — with work, ambition, success; mostly in vain. Hillesum offered another option: a different religiosity, a new sense of faith, beyond institutional religion.”
Levi added that at the center of Hillesum’s diary “is a leap: from a neurotic, self-absorbed woman to someone with deep autonomy. That process is accelerated by the threat she faces as a Jewish woman … At some point, she knows that even when everything is taken from her — her home, her freedom, even her life — she still has an inner core that can’t be lost.”
The award-winning director noted that the messages shared in Hillesum’s diaries are still relevant and must be shared, “especially after the horrors that shake the world of so many, over the past two years,” which may be a reference to the deadly Hamas-led terrorist attack in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
He said Hillesum’s “rejection of hatred, solidarity with the unprivileged, and inner freedom have brought solace and meaning to countless readers over the 44 years since her diaries were published,” including the filmmaker himself.
“Above all, this is a love story: the love of a young woman for the man who awakened her soul, and out of that awakening — a love for life, God, and all humankind,” he said in conclusion.
Watch the trailer for “Etty” below.
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Israeli President to Meet Pope Leo at the Vatican on Thursday
Israeli President Isaac Herzog speaks during a press conference with Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics in Riga, Latvia, Aug. 5, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
Israeli President Isaac Herzog will travel to the Vatican on Thursday to meet Pope Leo, who has recently stepped up his calls for an end to the war in Gaza.
The one-day visit is being made at the invitation of the pope, Herzog’s office said in a statement on Tuesday.
The president will also meet Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican‘s chief diplomat, and tour the Vatican Archives and Library, it added.
“Central to their meetings will be the efforts to secure the release of the hostages, the fight against global antisemitism, and the safeguarding of Christian communities in the Middle East, alongside discussions on other political matters,” the presidency said.
Leo, the first US pope, last week issued a “strong appeal” for an to end to the nearly two-year conflict between Israel and Hamas, calling for a permanent ceasefire, the release of hostages held in Gaza, and the provision of humanitarian aid.
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Iran Warns US Missile Demands Block Path to Nuclear Talks
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani speaks after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, Aug. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Aziz Taher
The path to nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States is not closed but US demands for curbs on Iranian missiles are obstructing prospects for talks, a senior Iranian official said on Tuesday.
A sixth round of Iran-US talks was suspended after the start of a 12-day war in June, in which Israel and the US struck Iranian nuclear facilities and Iran retaliated with waves of ballistic missiles against Israel.
“We indeed pursue rational negotiations. By raising unrealizable issues such as missile restrictions, they set a path that negates any talks,” the secretary of Iran‘s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, said in a post on X.
Western countries fear Iran‘s uranium enrichment program could yield material for an atomic warhead and that it seeks to develop a ballistic missile to carry one.
Iran says its nuclear program is only for electricity generation and other civilian uses and that it is enriching uranium as fuel for these purposes.
It has denied seeking to create missiles capable of carrying nuclear payloads and says its defense capabilities cannot be open to negotiation in any talks over its atomic program.
Larijani’s comments follow last week’s launch by France, Germany, and Britain of a “snapback mechanism” that could reimpose UN sanctions on Tehran over its nuclear program.
The three countries, also known as the E3, have urged Iran to engage in nuclear negotiations with the US, among other conditions, in order to have the imposition of the snapback sanctions delayed for up to six months.