Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump appeared together at the White House on September 29, just as news broke that Hamas had finally delivered a reply to Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan for Gaza.
The White House rushed to embrace Hamas’ six-paragraph statement, even posting it online in full — at one point mistakenly crediting it as a message from Trump himself. Hamas did not accept every element of the U.S. proposal, particularly provisions demanding that it disarm and remove itself from future governance of Gaza. Still, the group’s willingness to release all remaining hostages was enough for Trump to claim momentum toward peace.
“Based on the statement just issued by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that Israel should “immediately stop the bombing of Gaza.” His swift endorsement effectively boxed in Netanyahu, who had only days earlier been pressed by Trump to adopt the plan.
Netanyahu’s office responded cautiously the following morning, saying Israel would begin preparing to implement the first stage of Trump’s proposal and work “in full cooperation with the president and his team.” But Israeli officials privately admitted Trump’s announcement caught them off guard, particularly his demand that airstrikes halt without delay.
Trump, meanwhile, was quick to frame the moment as historic. In a video recorded from the Oval Office, he called Hamas’ response “unprecedented” and a “big day,” while thanking regional mediators from Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan. Notably, he did not mention Netanyahu by name.
That omission underscored a growing tension between the two leaders. Trump’s ultimatum earlier in the week — warning Hamas to accept his plan or face “all hell” in Gaza — has now shifted pressure squarely onto Israel. For the first time since the war began, Trump publicly ordered the Israeli government to halt its campaign in Gaza City.
According to Israeli sources, Netanyahu was surprised twice over: first by Trump’s immediate embrace of Hamas’ reply, and again by the demand to suspend bombing. Israel had intended to negotiate under fire, using military pressure as leverage. Instead, Trump forced an abrupt pause.
Negotiations are expected to resume in Cairo, with Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner leading the American side. Trump has already announced that Israel has agreed to an “initial withdrawal line” — a move he says will take effect once Hamas confirms its acceptance. “The ceasefire will be IMMEDIATELY effective,” Trump promised, calling it a step toward ending what he described as a “3,000-year catastrophe.”
Reactions in Washington and Jerusalem have been mixed. Some Republicans, like Sen. Lindsey Graham, dismissed Hamas’ reply as “a classic yes, but,” pointing out that the group had not pledged to disarm or relinquish authority in Gaza. Trump, however, brushed aside the caveats, saying the focus should remain on securing the hostages’ release.
Behind the scenes, U.S. officials say Trump was growing impatient waiting for Hamas to respond, even issuing a Sunday-night deadline that ultimately helped force the group’s hand. Regional partners told Washington that communication problems inside Hamas’ leadership slowed the reply.
Trump could have treated Hamas’ answer as insufficient and green-lit harsher Israeli strikes — as he had threatened. Instead, he leaned into the positives, placing Netanyahu in a politically awkward spot: accept Hamas’ partial response as progress, or risk clashing publicly with the U.S. president.
This friction is not new. Since returning to office in January, Trump and Netanyahu have sparred frequently over Israel’s prolonged war in Gaza and its expansion into neighboring countries. Trump has openly complained that such actions jeopardize his chances of brokering a peace deal — and potentially, in his view, a Nobel Prize.
Adding to the strain, many of Trump’s own supporters in the U.S. have grown weary of Israel’s campaign, with some calling it a “genocide.” Last month, Israeli airstrikes in Qatar targeting Hamas leaders drew condemnation across the Arab world and were seen in Washington as undermining negotiations. The fallout from those strikes spurred Trump’s team to put forward the multipoint ceasefire plan.
In their private Oval Office discussions last week, Trump and Netanyahu finally aligned on a version of the plan, though only after significant edits. Some of the changes worried Arab states already briefed on the deal, but the White House went ahead and published the full text while Hamas was still considering its position.
During the meeting, Netanyahu even placed a call to Qatar’s prime minister — with Trump present — to apologize for the Doha strikes. The gesture was viewed as essential to keeping Qatari mediation alive.
Now, with Hamas’ partial acceptance in hand, Trump is celebrating a breakthrough while Netanyahu is left managing the fallout at home. Whether this fragile step leads to an actual ceasefire remains uncertain — but for the moment, Trump has managed to seize control of the narrative.