US President Donald Trump has privately vented frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, telling aides the premier is “f**ing me,” the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
The remark follows Israel's recent strikes in Qatar's Doha targeting top Hamas leadership, which Trump was "unhappy about".
The report said that Trump is unlikely to break publicly with Netanyahu, even as the Israeli leader’s actions complicate the White House’s Middle East strategy.
Frustrations over Doha strike
The comment reportedly came during a discussion with senior aides, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on how to respond to Israel’s strike against Hamas leaders in Doha earlier this month.
Washington expressed disapproval of the operation, which apparently failed to eliminate some of its intended targets. US officials said they were informed too late to stop the strike. However, Axios, citing Israeli officials, reported otherwise.
Following the attack, Trump and senior officials met with Qatar’s prime minister, while Rubio shuttled between Israel and Qatar. Trump later praised Doha as a “great ally” and pledged that Israel would not carry out another strike on Qatari soil.
The WSJ report said that Trump remains broadly accommodating of Netanyahu’s decisions, including those that undercut Washington’s stated goals in Gaza and across the region.
Netanyahu told reporters on Wednesday that Trump had invited him to the White House next week, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. He said the invitation came during a Monday call, adding that he has held several “good” conversations with Trump since Israel’s September 9 strike in Qatar.
Unlike Joe Biden, Trump has avoided publicly pressuring Israel to cut a deal with Hamas to end the war in Gaza.
In June, after brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Iran following a brief conflict, Trump told reporters both sides “have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the fuck they’re doing.”
On Gaza, however, he has backed Israeli operations and threatened Hamas directly, demanding the group release hostages abducted in its October 7, 2023 assault.
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