Former President Trump advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the conflict in Gaza and return to normal life as soon as possible, warning that Israel was not doing well in the public relations battle with its war against Hamas.
Trump phoned in to conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt’s show on Thursday morning, where he was asked about recent comments that were seen as critical of Israel’s campaign in Gaza.
“Are you still 100 percent with Israel? And what’s your advice to Netanyahu other than resolving it quickly?” Hewitt asked.
“Well, that’s the only advice you can give. I mean, that’s the advice,” Trump said. “You've got to end it, and you have to go back to normal life.”
“And I’m not sure that I’m loving the way they’re doing it, because you’ve got to have victory,” he continued. “You have to have a victory, and it’s taking a long time. And the other thing is I hate, they put out tapes all the time. Every night, they’re releasing tapes of a building falling down. They shouldn’t be releasing tapes like that. They’re doing, that’s why they’re losing the PR war. They, Israel is absolutely losing the PR war.”
The former added that Israel must “finish what they started, and they’ve got to finish it fast, and we have to get on with life.”
His comments come as Israel is facing increasing scrutiny after a drone strike killed several humanitarian aid workers with World Central Kitchen who were helping to deliver food in Gaza.
The Biden White House, Democratic lawmakers and watchdog groups have been urging Israel to do more to protect civilians and to allow aid into Gaza, where thousands of Palestinians have been killed since the conflict began following Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel in October.
The former president, who is also the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, has not provided many insights into how he would handle the Israel-Hamas conflict if he were in the White House. Instead, he has repeatedly claimed that the war would not have started if he were president.
Trump has emphasized his administration’s support for Israel, although he has also criticized Jewish Americans who vote for Democrats or do not support Israel, suggesting they dislike their own religion.
