As of: April 5, 2024, 4:51 p.m
By: Bettina Menzel
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Former US President Donald Trump during a campaign appearance in Washington in February (archive photo). © IMAGO/Laura Brett/Zuma Wire
Trump calls on Israel to quickly end the Gaza war. The Republican does not say how he himself would deal with the Middle East conflict - but he criticizes US President Biden.
Washington – Former US President Donald Trump is in favor of a quick end to the Gaza war. Israel needs to “get it over with,” the Republican presidential candidate said in an interview with conservative US radio host Hugh Hewitt broadcast on Thursday (April 4). However, the Republican could not be persuaded to take a clear position on Israel.
Israel should end the Gaza war “and quickly because we need to return to normality and peace,” Trump said in the interview on Thursday. When asked whether he was still “100 percent on Israel’s side,” the 77-year-old failed to give a clear answer. The Republican had already made similarly vague comments on Fox News in March. In Thursday's conversation, Trump also did not address how he would deal with the Middle East conflict if he were re-elected as US president.
Trump on Israel's "PR" in Gaza war: Publishing pictures "to look strong"
Instead, the real estate mogul spoke about the impact of images of the Gaza war that the Israeli army distributes over the Internet. “They are releasing the most vile, horrific footage of buildings collapsing,” Trump said. “And people imagine that there are a lot of people in these buildings. And they don’t like that.” He doesn’t understand why Israel publishes such pictures. “I guess it makes her look strong. But it doesn't look strong to me. They are losing the PR war.” Trump described the Democratic incumbent Joe Biden as an “idiot” and the “stupidest president we have ever had” with regard to his Middle East policy.
Biden has recently come under increasing criticism for his Middle East policy - including within the party. In the primary elections in Michigan, around 100,000 Democratic voters refused to vote for him in protest. The US government is calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, but at the same time is supplying weapons to Israel. Recently, Biden's tone towards Israel had become sharper. After the fatal attack on a convoy belonging to the aid organization World Central Kitchen, the Democrat increased the pressure on the Israeli Prime Minister. The US President called on Benjamin Netanyahu to take “concrete” and “immediate” steps to ensure the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers.
After deadly attack on aid organization: Biden increases pressure on Netanyahu
On Friday, Israel announced the “temporary” opening of additional crossings for aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip. Israel began its military invasion of the Gaza Strip after Hamas' unprecedented terrorist attack. According to the Health Ministry, which is controlled by the radical Islamic Hamas, more than 33,000 people have died in the attacks so far, most of them civilians. Around a million people – roughly one in two residents of the Gaza Strip – suffer from a “catastrophic food situation,” the United Nations said in March. Meanwhile, 130 of the hostages abducted by Hamas from Israel are still in the control of the terrorist organization.
In a highly regarded speech, the highest-ranking Jewish politician in the USA, Democrat Chuck Schumer, spoke out in favor of new elections in Israel. Netanyahu is an “obstacle to peace”. Schumer describes himself as a staunch supporter of Israel. But now he criticized Netanyahu for being “only too willing to tolerate the high number of civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.” As a result, international support for Israel is falling “to historic lows,” warning: “Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah.”