[Global Times’ Special Correspondent in Egypt, Huang Peizhao, Global Times’ Reporter Ren Yiran] According to the “Israel Times” report on the 29th, U.S. President Donald Trump posted on his social media platform “Reality Social” early in the morning that day, saying: “A deal was reached in Gaza, bringing back the hostages!!!” Just hours before posting this post, Trump once again defended Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling for the Israeli prosecutors to close the case against Netanyahu. On the evening of the 28th local time, thousands of Israelis held a rally to protest the handling of the new round of the Israel-Palestine conflict by the Netanyahu government.
Trump wrote on “Reality Social”: “The uncontrollable (Israeli) prosecutors have done too much to Netanyahu. He cooperated with the United States to achieve great success in eliminating the Iranian nuclear threat. What’s important is that he is currently negotiating an agreement with Hamas, which includes rescuing the hostages. ‘How can the Prime Minister sit idly at the court all day? This is political persecution.’ Trump also mentioned, ‘The United States spends billions of dollars annually on protecting and supporting Israel, far exceeding any other country, and we cannot tolerate this situation.’ It is reported that Trump said at the end of the post, ‘Let’s forgive Bibi (Netanyahu’s nickname), he has big things to do!’
The “Israel Times” reported that Netanyahu posted a screenshot of Trump’s support for him on social media platform X, writing: “Thank you again, let us join hands, let the Middle East be great again!” Israeli opposition figures criticized Netanyahu for selling Israel’s national security for personal gain. According to the latest news, on the 29th local time, Netanyahu attended a temporary closed hearing in the Jerusalem District Court, discussing his recent request to postpone his trial for two weeks. After discussion, the judge canceled the hearing scheduled for next week but did not cancel the next week’s hearing, but indicated that the reasonable request would be considered.
This is not the first time Trump has defended Netanyahu. On the 25th of this month, Trump publicly pressured to withdraw corruption charges against Netanyahu. The Israeli prosecutors officially charged Netanyahu with bribery, fraud, and breach of public trust in early 2020. If convicted, Netanyahu faces up to 10 years in prison for bribery and up to 3 years in prison for fraud and breach of public trust.
According to the “Israel Times” report on the 29th, local time on the 28th night, thousands of Israelis returned to Tel Aviv’s “Hostage Plaza” to hold a rally, protesting the handling of the new round of the Israel-Palestine conflict by the Netanyahu government. On the evening of the 29th, Netanyahu held a meeting at the headquarters of the Southern Command of the Israeli Defense Forces to discuss the new round of the Israel-Palestine conflict and the issue of the hostage agreement.