Former President Trump reportedly asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to wrap up the Israel-Hamas war by the time he gets inaugurated, if he is elected, according to the Times of Israel.
The Israeli outlet was told about the exchange by an anonymous source familiar with the situation. Either Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris will be inaugurated on Jan. 20, depending on how voters cast their ballots on Nov. 5.
The Times of Israel’s source said that Trump initially gave the message to Netanyahu when the Israeli leader visited him at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, this past July.
While Trump has expressed a desire to end the war, which has been ongoing since Oct. 7, 2023, the fact that the request had a timeline was previously unknown.
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Former US President Donald Trump (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) pose for a photo at their meeting at Mar-a-Lago estate, in Palm Beach, Florida, United States on July 26, 2024. (Amos Ben-Gershom (GPO)/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Trump, who has not spoken about the Israel-Hamas war extensively on the campaign trail, has shown support for Israel’s targeting of Iranian nuclear sites.
“That’s the thing you wanna hit,” Trump said at a rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
The Biden-Harris administration has been largely supportive of Israel, though the White House has spoken out against the Israel Defense Forces‘ (IDF) recent military operations. Earlier this month, President Biden demanded a ceasefire shortly before Israel invaded Lebanon.
Smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike targeting Beirut’s southern suburb of Shayah on Oct. 22. (Fadel Itani/AFP via Getty Images)
During a CNN town hall last week, Harris dodged Anderson Cooper’s question about whether she was more “pro-Israel” than her Republican opponent.
“I believe that Donald Trump is dangerous,” Harris said, not addressing the question. “I believe that when you have a president of the United States who has said to his generals who worked for him because he is Commander in Chief — these conversations, I assume, many of them took place in the Oval Office — if the president of the United States, the Commander in Chief, is saying to his generals, in essence, ‘Why can’t you be more like Hitler’s generals?’ Anderson, come on.”
Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump arrives at a Q&A with Pastor Paula White at the National Faith Advisory Summit on Oct. 28, 2024 in Powder Springs, Georgia. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Fox News Digital reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.
Andrea Margolis is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Readers can send story tips to andrea.margolis@fox.com.
