World
Trump, Netanyahu to meet at White House in high-stakes talks on Iran, Gaza plan
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday in a visit expected to center on Iran, as Washington weighs diplomacy against the threat of military action and Israel pushes to shape the scope of negotiations.
Trump has signaled the Iranian file will dominate the agenda. In a phone interview with Axios, the president said Tehran “very much wants to reach a deal,” but warned, “Either we make a deal, or we’ll have to do something very tough — like last time.”
Netanyahu, speaking before departing Israel for Washington, said he intends to present Israel’s position. “I will present to the president our concept regarding the principles of the negotiations — the essential principles that are important not only to Israel but to anyone who wants peace and security in the Middle East,” he told reporters.
IRAN PUSHES FOR FRIDAY NUCLEAR TALKS IN OMAN AMID RISING TENSIONS WITH US FORCES: SOURCE
US President Donald Trump (R) greets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) upon arrival at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, on December 29, 2025. (Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images)
The meeting comes days after U.S. and Iranian officials resumed talks in Oman for the first time since last summer’s 12-day war, while the United States continues to maintain a significant military presence in the Gulf — a posture widely viewed as both deterrence and for holding leverage in negotiations with Tehran.
From the U.S. perspective, Iran is seen as a global security challenge rather than a regional one, according to Jacob Olidort, chief research officer and director of American security at the America First Policy Institute. “It’s an important historic time of potentially seismic proportions,” he told Fox News Digital.
“Iran is not so much a Middle East issue. It’s a global issue affecting U.S. interests around the world,” he added, calling the regime “probably the world’s oldest global terror network… [with] thousands of Americans killed through proxies.”
Olidort said the administration’s strategy appears to combine diplomacy with visible military pressure. “The president has been clear… should talks not be successful, the military option cannot be off the table,” he said. “Military assets in the region serve as part of the negotiation strategy with Iran.”
Iranians gather while blocking a street during a protest in Tehran, Iran on Jan. 9, 2026. (MAHSA / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)
ISRAELI UN AMBASSADOR SENDS STARK WARNING TO IRAN AMID GROWING UNREST
For Israel, the main concern is not only Iran’s nuclear program but also its ballistic missile arsenal and regional network of armed groups.
Trump indicated to Axios that the United States shares at least part of that view, saying any agreement would need to address not only nuclear issues but also Iran’s ballistic missiles.
Israeli intelligence expert Sima Shein has warned that negotiations narrowly focused on nuclear restrictions could leave Israel exposed. “The visit signals a lack of confidence that American envoys, Witkoff and Kushner, alone can represent Israel’s interests in the best way. They were in Israel just a week ago — but Netanyahu wants to speak directly with Trump, so there is no ambiguity about Israel’s position,” she added.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei makes first public appearance in weeks with fresh U.S. threats. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader Credit/ASSOCIATED PRESS)
TRUMP SAYS IRAN CALLED ‘NUMEROUS’ TIMES TO MAKE DEAL AS CARRIER ENTERS MIDDLE EAST WATERS
Shein says Iran may be stalling diplomatically to see whether Washington limits talks to nuclear issues while avoiding missile constraints. Her analysis further suggests that a sanctions-relief agreement that leaves Iran’s broader capabilities intact could stabilize the regime at a moment of internal pressure while preserving its military leverage.
“An agreement now would effectively save the regime at a time when it has no real solutions to its internal problems. Lifting sanctions through a deal would give it breathing room and help stabilize it,” she said.
“If there is an agreement, the United States must demand the release of all detainees and insist on humanitarian measures, including medical support for those who have been severely injured. Washington would need to be directly involved in enforcing those provisions.”
IRAN DRAWS MISSILE RED LINE AS ANALYSTS WARN TEHRAN IS STALLING US TALKS
Troops from the Givati Brigade, under the command of the 162nd Division, are operating in the area of Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip as part of Operation “Gideon’s Chariots”. (IDF Spokesman’s Unit)
Netanyahu said before leaving Israel that he and Trump would discuss “a series of topics,” including Gaza, where a U.S.-backed postwar framework and ceasefire implementation remain stalled.
According to Israeli reporting, Netanyahu plans to tell Trump that phase two of the Gaza peace plan “is not moving,” reflecting continued disputes over disarmament, governance and security arrangements.
The timing of Netanyahu’s visit may also allow him to avoid returning to Washington the following week for the inaugural session of the Board of Peace, Shein said, noting the initiative is controversial in Israel’s parliament.
Hamas terrorists stand in formation as Palestinians gather on a street to watch the handover of three Israeli hostages to a Red Cross team in Deir el-Balah, central Gaza, on Feb. 8, 2025. (Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“Israel is deeply concerned about the presence of Turkey and Qatar on the board of peace and their malign influence on other members as well as on the Palestinian authority’s technocratic government,” Dan Diker, president of the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, told Fox News Digital.
“Hamas’s control of Gaza has not weakened, while international commitments to disarm Hamas have appeared to weaken,” he added, “The longer the U.S. waits before taking action against the Iranian regime, the more compromised Israel is in its ability and determination to forcibly disarm Hamas, both of which require the sanction and the blessing of the new international structures on Gaza.”
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“The prime minister’s deep concern is the stalled state of affairs both against the Iranian regime and apparently in Gaza. Timing is critical on both fronts. And for Israel, the window seems to be closing,” Diker said.
World
Investors brace for a bigger backlash from Middle East war
World
Tel Aviv analyst shelters from 30 missile sirens in 48 hours, says Iran ‘won’t recover’
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The past 48 hours in Tel Aviv have been unlike anything seen before, a leading security analyst has said, as sirens blared amid missile threats following Operation Epic Fury and U.S.-Israeli strikes in Iran.
“We are facing a biblical event — nothing less,” Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute, told Fox News Digital, speaking from his shelter in the city.
Like many Israelis, Michael said he had spent hours in reinforced rooms during the ongoing barrage, adding that he was “very experienced in this.”
“But this all requires time and determination, and I do hope that Trump will also have them both,” he said, speaking shortly after the president released a video message stating that the military operation would continue “until all of our objectives are achieved.”
Explosions from projectile interceptions by Israel’s Iron Dome missile defence system over Tel Aviv. (JACK GUEZ / AFP via Getty Images)
“Trump is the only one who can make the change — and that change will impact the entire region and the international order for years to come,” Michael added.
As of Sunday, Tel Aviv remained under a state of emergency following Iranian missile attacks that caused casualties and widespread damage.
According to The Associated Press, Iranian missile and drone strikes have killed approximately 11 Israeli civilians and wounded dozens more in retaliation for the U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran.
Shrapnel from missile impacts damaged at least 40 buildings in Tel Aviv, and authorities reported at least one death in the area from falling debris.
The Philippine Embassy in Israel confirmed the death of a Filipino national after a missile strike hit Tel Aviv on Saturday.
TOMAHAWKS, B-2 STEALTH BOMBERS AND ATTACK DRONES POUND OVER 1,000 IRANIAN TARGETS IN 24-HOUR BLITZ
People take shelter as Iran launched missiles and drones towards Israel following the US-Israeli attacks. ( Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“We enter our shelter once the siren is heard and stay there until the Home Front Command announces that we can leave,” Michael said.
“Usually, it is about 20 to 30 minutes — unless there are further sirens during our stay. Since yesterday morning, it has happened around 30 times.”
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog also visited an impact site in Tel Aviv Sunday, delivering a message of resilience.
“The people of Israel and the people of Iran can live in peace. The region can live in peace. But what undermines peace time and again is terror instigated by this Iranian regime,” Herzog said.
EXILED IRANIAN CROWN PRINCE SAYS US STRIKES MARK ‘BEGINNING OF THE VERY END’ FOR REGIME
Israeli emergency service officer walks past building debris at the scene of a Iranian missile attack. (Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP via Getty Images)
Following the reported killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and roughly 40 senior Iranian officials, Iran formed a provisional leadership council.
Iran named Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, President Masoud Pezeshkian and Judiciary Chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i to lead roles.
“The Supreme Leader did not complete the necessary groundwork regarding his own succession,” Michael added.
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“Pezeshkian will face very troubling challenges due to their heavy losses, severe disruptions to control and command systems, and the massive bombing and attacks across Iran, including Tehran,” he said.
“Even if this regime doesn’t collapse, it will never be able to reconstitute itself, recover or return to its previous position,” Michael added.
World
Israel FM says Europe too divided, slams Spanish PM
Israeli minister Gideon Sa’ar said Europe “does not have unified position” on what role it should play in Iran as European ministers sought to establish a joint approach Sunday.
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As Israel and the United States conducted a joint military strike on Iran, leading to the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Europe was kept on the sidelines.
EU member states did not participate in the operation and, in some cases, they were not informed prior as it is customary among strategic allies.
Asked whether Israel sought to keep Europe on the margins, Sa’ar said internal divisions within EU member states had kept them out of critical exchanges of operational details, unlike the United States, which the minister described as his country’s greatest ally.
“In Europe, you have all kinds of approaches,” he told Euronews. “You have countries like the Czech Republic which is strongly supporting this operation and then you have Spain, which is standing with all the tyrants of the world.”
On Saturday, Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez was among the most critical voices in Europe, suggesting the US-Israeli strikes on Iran risk plunging the region into total war.
“We reject the unilateral military action of the United States and Israel, which represents an escalation and contributes to a more uncertain and hostile international order,” Sánchez said Saturday. The Spanish PM reiterated that message on Sunday.
“We urge for de-escalation and call to respect international law in all conflicts,” Sánchez added. “You can be against a heinous regime, like the Iranian regime, while also rejecting a military intervention that is unjustified, dangerous and outside of international law.”
Sa’aar said Israel considers the operation “fully justified” citing the right to self-defense from a regime that “has called for the destruction of Israel” and lashed at the Spanish prime minister for sending an “anti-Israeli, anti-American message.”
“Read the statement, they are standing with Iran!” he added.
When asked if any of his European counterparts had manifested an interest in joining the military operation or provide support on the ground, Sa’ar said he held multiple exchanges with European ministers over the weekend and suggested that “if others want to join, they will know have to convey the message.”
On Sunday, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen appeared to back regime change in Iran in line with Israel and the US, saying that the “risk of further escalation is real. This is why a credible transition in Iran is urgently needed” in comments on Sunday.
Sa’ar told Euronews said the strategic strikes and the elimination of Khamenei alongside top regime commanders could “create the conditions to weaken the regime enough to allow the Iranians to take their future into their own hands”.
“The future leadership of Iran should be determined by the Iranian people through free elections. Our only requirement is that whoever comes to power in Iran must not pursue the destruction of Israel,” he said.
Watch the full interview on Euronews from 8pm CET
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