Trump Sides With the Israeli People Against Netanyahu

Most Israelis support what Trump is doing—and oppose Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach to the war in Gaza. “President Trump, when he told me to go get back every hostage, every Israeli, he wasn’t kidding,” Boehler told the passengers. Just 20 percent of Israelis support Jewish settlement in Gaza, and only 16 percent back prolonged Israeli military governance there. Given these realities, Trump may well understand that his Israeli counterpart is a paper tiger who lacks popular legitimacy. For now, the Alexander negotiation that sidelined Netanyahu and the Trump team’s subsequent push for a final hostage and cease-fire deal suggests that the administration has picked a side—the Israeli majority’s side.