Netanyahu said his meeting with Trump focused on freeing hostages in Gaza, and stressed his determination to "eliminate" the capabilities of Hamas.

The war started after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage. Most of the hostages have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

US President Donald Trump’s foreign envoy Steve Witkoff said Tuesday that he’s hopeful of having a Gaza ceasefire deal by the end of the week, as negotiators make substantial progress working through remaining issues.