Trump and Netanyahu Discuss Gaza Hostages and Syria, Israeli PM Says

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump prior to signing the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations between Israel and some of its Middle East neighbors, during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, September 15, 2020. (Reuters)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump prior to signing the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations between Israel and some of its Middle East neighbors, during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, September 15, 2020. (Reuters)
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Trump and Netanyahu Discuss Gaza Hostages and Syria, Israeli PM Says

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump prior to signing the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations between Israel and some of its Middle East neighbors, during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, September 15, 2020. (Reuters)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump prior to signing the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations between Israel and some of its Middle East neighbors, during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, September 15, 2020. (Reuters)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with US President-elect Donald Trump about developments in Syria and a recent push to secure the release of Israeli and foreign hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, he said on Sunday.

Netanyahu said he spoke with Trump on Saturday night about the issue, which will loom large as one of the main foreign challenges facing Trump when he takes office if it is not resolved before he is sworn in on Jan. 20.

Hamas-led fighters killed 1,200 people and abducted more than 250, including Israeli-American dual nationals, during their Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel, according to Israeli tallies. More than 100 hostages have been freed through negotiations or Israeli military rescue operations. Of the 100 still held in Gaza, roughly half are believed to be alive.

Israel's response has killed almost 45,000 people, mostly civilians, according to authorities in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, displaced nearly the entire population and left much of the enclave in ruins.

Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, warned last week during a visit to the region that it would "not be a pretty day" if the hostages held in Gaza were not released before Trump's inauguration.

Trump said earlier this month there would be "hell to pay" in the Middle East if the hostages were not released before he came into office.

A Trump spokesperson on Sunday declined to give further details about the call.

A bid by Egypt, Qatar and the United States to reach a truce that would also include a hostage deal has gained momentum in recent weeks.

Netanyahu said he had spoken with Trump about efforts to secure a hostage release. "We discussed the need to complete Israel's victory and we spoke at length about the efforts we are making to free our hostages," he said.

President Joe Biden's outgoing administration is working hard to achieve a deal. US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, who was in the region last week, said on Thursday he believed a deal on a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release may be close, and deputy national security adviser Jon Finer told Reuters there was momentum in the process.

Netanyahu said he and Trump had also discussed the situation in Syria following the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Syria's strategic weapons stockpiles in the days since Assad's ouster and moved troops into a demilitarized zone inside Syria.

"We have no interest in a conflict with Syria," Netanyahu said in a statement. Israeli actions in Syria were intended to "thwart the potential threats from Syria and to prevent the takeover of terrorist elements near our border," he said.



Drone Attack Targets Tawke Oilfield in Iraq's Kurdistan

General view of the Sarsang oilfield operated by HKN Energy, after a drone attack, in Duhok province, Iraq, July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
General view of the Sarsang oilfield operated by HKN Energy, after a drone attack, in Duhok province, Iraq, July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
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Drone Attack Targets Tawke Oilfield in Iraq's Kurdistan

General view of the Sarsang oilfield operated by HKN Energy, after a drone attack, in Duhok province, Iraq, July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
General view of the Sarsang oilfield operated by HKN Energy, after a drone attack, in Duhok province, Iraq, July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari

A drone attack targeted an oilfield operated by Norwegian oil and gas firm DNO in Tawke, in the Zakho Administration area of northern Iraq, on Thursday, the Kurdistan region's counter-terrorism service said.

The attack is the second on the DNO-operated field since a wave of drone attacks began early this week.

DNO, which operates the Tawke and Peshkabour oilfields in the Zakho area that borders Türkiye, temporarily suspended production at the fields following explosions that caused no injuries, the counter-terrorism service said.

DNO did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

This week's drone attacks have reduced oil output from oilfields in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region by between 140,000 to 150,000 barrels per day, two energy officials said on Wednesday, as infrastructure damage forced multiple shutdowns.