After Hamas responded to US President Donald Trump's peace plan on Friday, Trump told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he was “always so f***ing negative” when the Israeli leader expressed reservations about what Hamas was actually agreeing to, Axios’s Barak Ravid reported on Sunday.
The comments reportedly came during a Friday phone call between the two leaders following the terror group’s response. They were confirmed to Axios by two American officials.
“Bibi told Trump this is nothing to celebrate, and that it doesn't mean anything," Axios quoted one official with knowledge of the call as saying.
"I don't know why you're always so f***ing negative. This is a win. Take it," Trump reportedly responded.
Potential end to the Israel-Hamas War
Netanyahu, who emphasized that he saw Hamas's response as a rejection of the president's proposal, had aimed to align Israel’s response with the US to prevent the impression that Hamas had responded favorably, an Israeli official told Ravid.
Trump, however, viewed Hamas’s response as an opening for a deal and a potential end to the Israel-Hamas War.
The conversation between the two leaders was "tough and firm," Axios quoted an official as saying. Nevertheless, it reportedly concluded with both Trump and Netanyahu in agreement.
"Ultimately, President Trump wants peace, and that's what matters most. The administration is already working closely with Israel to accomplish that," a US official was quoted by Axios as saying.
Axios received no comment from the White House on the call between the two.
Despite the prime minister’s reservations, Axios reported that Netanyahu’s aides stressed that he and Trump were on the same page, as evidenced by his eventual agreement to the peace plan, which included an updated map for the IDF's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip should the ceasefire take effect.