US President Donald Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Florida on Monday for talks on moving to the next stage of the fragile Gaza truce plan.
The two leaders discussed an array of issues, issuing threats to Hamas and Iran, but signs of disagreement also appeared amid Trump’s frustration with Netanyahu.
The Israeli and US administrations are increasingly at odds on many key issues, including Israeli settlement in the West Bank, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Syria.
However at a press conference Trump said he was “not concerned” about Israel’s repeated violations of the Gaza ceasefire and Netanyahu responded by saying that "we've never had a friend like President Trump in the White House."
Threats to Hamas in Gaza
Trump warned that Hamas would have "hell to pay" if it does not disarm quickly as part of the Gaza deal, which he claimed Israel was complying with, despite its daily airstrikes and attacks in Gaza which have killed over 400 people since the ceasefire began last Octowber.
"If they don't disarm as they agreed to do, then there will be hell to pay for them," Trump threatened Hamas at a joint news conference with Trump.
"They have to disarm in a fairly short period of time," Trump said.
Trump publicly threw his support behind Netanyahu, who has so far refused to move to the next stage of the Gaza ceasefire plan.
"I'm not concerned about anything that Israel's doing," Trump said, despite its near-daily ceasefire violations.
"I'm concerned about what other people are doing or maybe aren't doing. But I'm not concerned. They've lived up to the plan."
Hamas's armed wing reiterated earlier on Monday that it would not surrender its weapons.
"Our people are defending themselves and will not give up their weapons as long as the occupation remains," the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said in a video message.
Beating the Iran war drum again
The two leaders also discussed Iran, with Trump saying that if Tehran rebuilt its nuclear facilities the United States would "knock them down."
On Iran, Israeli officials and media have claimed that Iran is rebuilding its ballistic missile arsenal after Israel attacked it in a 12-day war last June.
Trump told reporters Monday he believed Tehran wanted to make a deal but warned it would face a repeat of US attacks on its nuclear facilities "fast" if it tried to rebuild its program.
Iran on Monday denounced the reports as a "psychological operation" against Tehran, emphasizing it was fully prepared to defend itself, and warning renewed aggression would "result in harsher consequences" for Israel.
West Bank: signs of disagreement
Trump and his top advisers asked Netanyahu to change Israel's policies in the occupied West Bank during their meeting, Axios said on Monday.
Israel has recently approved new settlements there, sparking international condemnation and violent attacks by settlers on Palestinians have increased.
The Israeli army has also increased its attacks on Palestinian towns and cities, killing over 1,000 people in the territory since the war on Gaza began in October 2023.
It has also taken away funding from the beleaguered West Bank based Palestinian Authority, while taking steps to impose “sovereignty” over the Palestinian territory.
US officials reportedly told Netanyahu to avoid further escalation in the territory with Trump asking the Israeli leader to “calm things down”.
In a briefing after a meeting with Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Trump said, "We have had a discussion, big discussion for a long time on the West Bank. And I wouldn't say we agree on the West Bank 100%, but we'll come to a conclusion on the West Bank," Trump said.
"I don't want to do that, it will be announced at an appropriate time," Trump said when asked what the disagreement between them was. Netanyahu "will do the right thing," Trump added.
Syria: ‘I hope they get along’
Netanyahu said that Israel was keen to ensure a peaceful border with Syria, and US President Donald Trump said he was sure Israeli and Syrian leaders would get along.
However, Israel continues to launch strikes and incursions into Syria, taking the opportunity of the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024 to grab more territory there and destroy key sites belonging to the Syrian army.
It occupied the Syrian Golan Heights in 1967 and now claims that a 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria no longer applies.
"Our interest is to have a peaceful border with Syria," Netanyahu said at the press conference.
Trump has met current Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa several times since the fall of the Assad regime and praised him, also repealing stringent Caesar Act sanctions against Syria..
Trump said he and Netanyahu had what Trump called an understanding regarding Syria. "I'm sure that Israel and him (Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa) will get along. I will try and make it so that they do get along."
Lebanon: ‘We’ll see about it’
Israel has increased its attacks on Lebanon ever since the October truce in Gaza, making threats to restart the war that ended in November 2024.
The Lebanese government has been making efforts to disarm Hezbollah following the truce, but the group has refused to give up its weapons as long as Israel continues its attacks.
Trump was deliberately vague regarding the situation in Lebanon, leaving open the possibility of renewed Israeli war.
“We’ll see about it,” Trump said when asked if he’d support more Israeli strikes on Lebanon.
“The Lebanese government is at a little bit of a disadvantage, if you think of it, with Hezbollah. But Hezbollah has been behaving badly, so we’ll see what happens.”