Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s flight to Washington, D.C., has been moved up to 8 a.m. Israel Time, two hours earlier than previously planned, the Prime Minister’s Office said on Saturday evening.
Israel’s longest-serving premier is scheduled to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
“The prime minister will be the first world leader to meet with President Trump in the wake of his inauguration,” the PMO statement read. “In this historic meeting, the two leaders will discuss Gaza, the hostages, the challenges posed by all elements of the Iranian axis, and other key issues.”
The visit wasn’t mentioned at the Trump administration’s first White House press briefing on Tuesday, and the administration hasn’t commented on it publicly.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) told JNS on Tuesday that he is “very glad to see my friend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the leader of Israel and our greatest ally in the Middle East, slated as the first state visit to Trump’s White House.
“I look forward to working with President Trump and the prime minister on securing the release of the hostages and continuing the strategic objectives to secure the region,” Scott said.
Former President Joe Biden invited Netanyahu to the White House for the first time during his tenure on July 25, 2024—some 20 months after Netanyahu was re-elected as prime minister in November 2022.
Although the upcoming visit was not announced by the White House, an image of what appears to be an invitation that Trump sent to Netanyahu circulated on social media. “I would like to formally invite you to the White House next week,” states the letter, dated Jan. 28 and signed by the president.
“I look forward to discussing how we can bring peace to Israel and its neighbors, and efforts to counter our shared adversaries,” it adds. “It will be my honor to host you as my first foreign leader during my second term.”
