JERUSALEM
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that he and US President Donald Trump agreed to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and also discussed a US plan to move Palestinians from Gaza.
The statement came in a televised address from Washington, DC wrapping up a visit where Netanyahu met with Trump, whose administration has fully backed Israel’s genocide in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023.
Netanyahu said their talks focused on Iran’s nuclear program as a top priority. The US, Israel and other nations accuse Tehran of pursuing nuclear weapons, though Iran insists that its program is peaceful and aimed at generating electricity.
Israel, the region’s sole nuclear-armed state, maintains an arsenal outside international oversight and has occupied Arab lands in Palestine, Syria and Lebanon for decades.
“We agree that Iran will not have nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu said, according to Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.
He advocated a Libyan-style deal where US-led forces would “enter Iran, demolish facilities and dismantle all equipment” under supervision—echoing Libya’s 2003 disarmament under leader Muammar Gaddafi verified by international inspectors.
“The second possibility is that this doesn't materialize. They (Iranians) simply protract the talks, and then the option becomes military. Everyone comprehends this. We discussed this thoroughly,” he added.
On Monday, Trump announced “direct negotiations” with Iran starting Saturday, surprising Tel Aviv, which has repeatedly urged Washington to back a strike on Iran’s nuclear sites, Israeli media reported.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi later said that Oman would host “indirect talks” on Saturday.
Israel’s Channel 12 reported Tuesday that Washington urgently summoned Netanyahu during his Sunday visit to Hungary to inform him of Trump’s negotiation plans.
Israel and Iran, each viewing the other as its chief adversary, have traded blame for years over sabotage and cyberattacks.
Netanyahu also addressed Gaza, which has been under an Israeli assault for over 18 months, claiming over 166,000 Palestinian casualties—mostly women and children—and more than 11,000 missing.
He reiterated goals to crush the Palestinian group Hamas and free 59 Israeli captives, 24 believed alive, held by Palestinian resistance groups. Israel meanwhile holds more than 9,500 Palestinians in jails, where reports of torture, starvation and medical neglect have led to deaths, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights and media accounts.
A ceasefire and prisoner exchange mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the US took effect on Jan. 19, with Hamas honoring the first phase, which ended on March 1.
But Netanyahu scuttled the second phase and resumed attacks on March 18, yielding to his hardline coalition.
“We also discussed President Trump's vision, as we are currently in contact with nations discussing the possibility of absorbing numerous Gazans,” Netanyahu said.
On March 4, an urgent Arab League summit approved a $53 billion five-year plan to rebuild Gaza without displacement, which Israel and the US rejected, favoring Trump’s relocation scheme to Egypt, Jordan or beyond, which was met with refusal from those countries, joined by other Arab states and global bodies.
Gaza’s 2.4 million residents, 1.5 million now homeless, face famine after 18 years of an Israeli blockade and closed aid crossings.
Netanyahu also spoke on US tariffs, which were recently raised worldwide.
“Trump requested countries to reduce their trade deficit with the US to zero. I told him that's not particularly difficult for us. We'll accomplish it. It's the least we can do for the US and its president, who do so much for us.”
Israel Army Radio reported Monday that Trump, asked about easing Israel’s 17% tariff, replied: “Well, we’re talking about a whole new trade — maybe not.”
“We give Israel $4 billion a year. That’s a lot. We give Israel billions of dollars a year. Billions. It’s one of the highest of anyone,” he added.
More than 50,800 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
