WH Officials Slam Netanyahu Over Syria Strikes

Trump has made ending foreign wars one of his top priorities during his second term.

As part of that effort, he has sought to thaw out long-strained US relations with Syria and give its new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, a chance despite his past ties to al-Qaeda and Islamic extremism.

Trump met with al-Sharaa in May and has since moved to scrap sanctions on Syria — but the situation is widely seen as very delicate. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that the war-torn country is weeks away from “potential collapse and a full-scale civil war of epic proportions.”

Israel’s bombing in Syria came just days after Netanyahu’s visit to the US, where he was given a warm reception at the White House and announced plans to nominate Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Huckabee has long been staunchly pro-Israel and even attended Netanyahu’s trial to back the prime minister amid internal corruption claims.

Last month, after Israel launched preemptive strikes against Iran in the middle of Trump’s negotiations with the theocratic regime, there had been speculation that the White House was uneasy with the attacks.

Rubio initially put out a bland statement acknowledging the strikes but refraining from endorsing them. Trump later dropped heavy-duty bunker buster bombs on key Iranian nuclear facilities.

Former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden have all had various issues and conflicts with Netanyahu, grumbling that he is too hawkish and not always trustworthy.

During the 2024 campaign cycle, Trump occasionally hinted at his own beefs with Netanyahu, at one point faulting him for the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack happening under his watch.

Trump also grumbled that Netanyahu agreed to help with the January 2020 US attack that took out Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani before backing out, as well as the fact that the Israeli prime minister acknowledged Biden’s electoral victory.

Since then, the two leaders have appeared to bury the hatchet. Despite the reported issues with Netanyahu behind the scenes, the Trump administration has refrained from knocking him publicly.