U.S. President Donald Trump spoke Monday evening with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and invited him to the White House “in the near future,” according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
The two leaders reportedly discussed regional security and reaffirmed their shared commitment to dismantling Hamas’ military infrastructure and demilitarizing the Gaza Strip. They also addressed the prospect of expanding Arab-Israeli normalization agreements.
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Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, Ahmad al-Sharaa
(Photo: IDF, Khalil Ashawi/ Reuters, Kobi Gideon/ GPO, Alex Brandon/ AP)
If held, the meeting would mark Netanyahu’s fifth visit to the White House since Trump returned to office. The two leaders previously met in February, April, July and again in late September, when Netanyahu presented his plan for ending the war in Gaza. Israeli officials estimate that the upcoming meeting could take place within the next two weeks, before the U.S. government begins its year-end holiday recess around December 20.
The call came shortly after Trump posted a message on Truth Social praising recent developments in Syria under its new president, Ahmad al-Sharaa. “The United States is very satisfied with the results displayed, through hard work and determination, in the Country of Syria,” Trump wrote. He credited his removal of sanctions as a key turning point: “One of the things that has helped them greatly was my termination of very strong and biting sanctions — I believe this was truly appreciated by Syria, its Leadership, and its People!”
Trump urged Israel to maintain a “strong and true dialogue with Syria,” emphasizing that “nothing takes place that will interfere with Syria’s evolution into a prosperous State.” He described al-Sharaa as a reformist figure: “The new President of Syria, Ahmad al-Sharaa, is working diligently to make sure good things happen, and that both Syria and Israel will have a long and prosperous relationship together.”
The praise comes just weeks after a rare, high-level U.S.-Syria meeting at the White House. Al-Sharaa, who assumed leadership following the fall of Bashar Assad at the end of Syria’s civil war, visited Washington in what was described as a “historic” moment by U.S. officials—the first visit by a Syrian president to the White House in over two decades. Trump, in a press conference, described al-Sharaa as “a young and attractive guy” and said he believed the Syrian leader “has what it takes to succeed.”
During the visit, Trump presented al-Sharaa with two bottles of his personal fragrance, Victory 45–47, spraying one on the Syrian president in front of the cameras. The two had first met during Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this year.
Trump has positioned al-Sharaa as a potential partner for peace in the region. “We want to see Syria succeed, and I believe he can make that happen,” Trump said. Acknowledging the Syrian leader’s past as a former jihadist aligned with al-Qaeda, Trump added, “His past is problematic, but so is everyone’s. He gets along great with Turkey, with Erdoğan, who is a great leader. Syria is a key part of the Middle East, and we’re working to help Israel reach an agreement with Syria — and it’s going great.”
The comments follow a deadly Israeli military raid last week in the southern Syrian village of Beit Jinn, where IDF reserve paratroopers clashed with terrorists from the Sunni extremist group al-Jama’a al-Islamiyya (Islamic Group). Six Israeli soldiers were wounded—three seriously—while Syrian sources reported 20 terrorists killed.
The Syrian presidency confirmed that al-Sharaa met in Damascus on Monday with U.S. special envoy Tom Barrack to discuss regional developments and mutual interests, alongside Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani.