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Trump Says He Recently Spoke with Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu

Surrounded by Army cadets, President Donald Trump watches the first half of the 121st Army-Navy Football Game, Dec. 12, 2020, in West Point, N.Y. (AP)
Surrounded by Army cadets, President Donald Trump watches the first half of the 121st Army-Navy Football Game, Dec. 12, 2020, in West Point, N.Y. (AP)
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Trump Says He Recently Spoke with Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu

Surrounded by Army cadets, President Donald Trump watches the first half of the 121st Army-Navy Football Game, Dec. 12, 2020, in West Point, N.Y. (AP)
Surrounded by Army cadets, President Donald Trump watches the first half of the 121st Army-Navy Football Game, Dec. 12, 2020, in West Point, N.Y. (AP)

Former US President Donald Trump, who is the Republican presidential candidate, said he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "like two days ago."

Trump was asked when last he spoke to the Israeli leader during a Fox News interview that aired on Sunday.

"Like two days ago and he came to my house in Florida, Mar-a-Lago with his wife who was lovely," he responded.

Trump met with Netanyahu at his resort in Palm Beach, Florida, in July. It was their first meeting since the end of Trump's presidency.

US President Joe Biden also spoke with Netanyahu last week amid tensions with Iran.

Their Wednesday call was the first known conversation between the two leaders since August.

It coincided with a sharp escalation of Israel's conflict with Iran and the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah.

Trump called the lack of conversation between Biden and Netanyahu in nearly two months "pathetic."

"I can tell you that Bibi has been very strong," Trump said. "He's not listening to Biden."

Relations between Biden and Netanyahu have been tense, strained over the Israeli leader’s handling of the war in Gaza and the conflict with Hezbollah. Israel has said it will pursue its military operations until Israelis are safe.

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Israel Reinforces Ban on UN Chief Entering Country over Iran Attack Comments

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo
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Israel Reinforces Ban on UN Chief Entering Country over Iran Attack Comments

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz reinforced on Sunday his decision to declare UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres persona non grata over what he described as a failure to condemn Iran's missile attack and antisemitic and anti-Israel conduct.  

On Oct. 2, Katz said that he was barring Guterres from entering Israel. He posted on X on Sunday that "Guterres can continue seeking support from UN member states, but the decision will not change."

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric described the initial announcement on Oct. 2 as political and "just one more attack, so to speak, on UN staff that we've seen from the government of Israel."

He said the UN traditionally does not recognize the concept of persona non grata as applying to UN staff.

When asked to respond to Katz's remarks on Sunday, a UN spokesperson referred to Dujarric's earlier comments.

Dujarric also said last week that the UN had not received any formal communication from Israel on the matter.

On Oct. 3, the UN Security Council expressed its full support for Guterres, saying in a statement that "any decision not to engage with the UN Secretary-General or the United Nations is counterproductive, especially in the context of escalating tensions in the Middle East."

When asked last week if Guterres had been made persona non grata by Israel, Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon told reporters: "There was a statement made ... we will evaluate the relationship. We are here at the UN, we work with the UN agencies, but we were disappointed."

Iran fired more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel on Oct. 1 amid an escalation in fighting between Israel and its proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah. Many were intercepted in flight but some penetrated missile defenses.

Guterres condemned the missile attack and "the broadening of the Middle East conflict, with escalation after escalation." Earlier the same day, Israel had sent troops into southern Lebanon.

During a Security Council meeting a day later, Guterres said: "As I did in relation to the Iranian attack in April - and as should have been obvious yesterday in the context of the condemnation I expressed - I again strongly condemn yesterday’s massive missile attack by Iran on Israel."