SummaryPressure grows for Netanyahu to clinch ceasefire deal for GazaVisit marks Netanyahu's third in Trump's second termTwo leaders due to have private dinner instead of formal talks WASHINGTON/TEL AVIV, July 7 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for White House talks on Monday, while Israeli officials held indirect negotiations with Hamas aimed at securing a U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire and hostage-release deal. Netanyahu's visit follows Trump's prediction, on the eve of their meeting, that such an agreement could be reached this week. Before heading to Washington, the right-wing Israeli leader said his discussions with Trump could help advance negotiations under way in Qatar between Israel and the Palestinian militant group. Advertisement · Scroll to continue It was Trump's third face-to-face encounter with Netanyahu since returning to office in January, and came just over two weeks after the president ordered the bombing of Iranian nuclear sites in support of Israeli air strikes. Trump then helped arrange a ceasefire in the 12-day Israel-Iran war. Trump and his aides appeared to be trying to seize on any momentum created by the weakening of Iran, which backs Hamas, to push both sides for a breakthrough in the 21-month Gaza war. He said he also wants to discuss with Netanyahu the prospects for a "permanent deal" with Iran, Israel's regional arch-foe. Advertisement · Scroll to continue The two leaders were scheduled to have a private dinner instead of formal talks in the Oval Office, where the president usually greets visiting dignitaries. It was not immediately clear why Trump was taking a lower-key approach with Netanyahu this time. After arriving overnight in Washington, Netanyahu met earlier on Monday with Trump’s Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in preparation for his talks with the president. He planned to visit the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday to see congressional leaders. Ahead of the visit, Netanyahu told reporters he would thank Trump for the U.S. air strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, and said Israeli negotiators were driving for a deal on Gaza in Doha, Qatar's capital. Israeli officials also hope the outcome of the conflict with Iran will pave the way for normalisation of relations with more of its neighbors such as Lebanon, Syria and Saudi Arabia, another issue expected to be on the agenda with Trump. Ad Break Coming Up NEXT StayNext OffEnglish 180p288p360p480p540p576p720pHD1080pHDAuto (180p) About ConnatixV594589 About ConnatixV594589 Continue watchingafter the adVisit Advertiser websiteGO TO PAGE SECOND DAY OF QATAR TALKS Witkoff, who played a major role in crafting the 60-day ceasefire proposal at the centre of the Qatar negotiations, will travel to Doha this week to join discussions there, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Monday. In a sign of continued gaps between the two sides, Palestinian sources said Israel's refusal to allow the free and safe entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza remains the main obstacle to progress in the indirect talks. Israel insists it is taking steps to get food into Gaza but seeks to prevent militants from diverting supplies. On the second day of negotiations, mediators hosted one round and talks were expected to resume in the evening, the Palestinian sources told Reuters. The U.S.-backed proposal envisages a phased release of hostages, Israeli troop withdrawals from parts of Gaza and discussions on ending the war entirely. Hamas has long demanded a final end to the war before it would free remaining hostages; Israel has insisted it would not agree to halt fighting until all hostages are released and Hamas dismantled. Trump told reporters last week that he would be “very firm” with Netanyahu on the need for a speedy Gaza deal and that the Israeli leader also wanted to end the war. Some of Netanyahu's hardline coalition partners oppose halting military operations but, with Israelis having become increasingly weary of the Gaza war, his government is expected to back a ceasefire if he can secure acceptable terms. A ceasefire at the start of this year collapsed in March, and talks to revive it have so far been fruitless. Meanwhile, Israel has intensified its military campaign in Gaza and sharply restricted food distribution. Gazans were watching closely for any sign of a breakthrough. “I ask God almighty that the negotiating delegation or the mediators pressure with all their strength to solve this issue, because it has totally became unbearable,”said Abu Suleiman Qadoum, a displaced resident of Gaza city. The Gaza war erupted when Hamas attacked southern Israel in October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Some 50 hostages remain in Gaza, with 20 believed to be alive. Israel's retaliatory war in Gaza has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave's health ministry. Most of Gaza's population has been displaced by the war and nearly half a million people are facing famine within months, according to United Nations estimates. Trump has been strongly supportive of Netanyahu, even wading into domestic Israeli politics last month by lashing out at prosecutors over a corruption trial against the Israeli leader on bribery, fraud and breach-of-trust charges that Netanyahu denies. Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Matt Spetalnick in Washington, Alexander Cornwell in Tel Aviv and Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem; Additional reporting by Mahmoud Issa in Gaza, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo and Jarrett Renshaw in Washington; Writing by Andrea Shalal and Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Richard Chang, Peter Graff, Deepa Babington and Cynthia Osterman Purchase Licensing Rights Alexander CornwellThomson ReutersAlexander has over a decade of international reporting experience. He is currently a senior correspondent in Jerusalem covering Israel & the Palestinian Territories and was formerly in Dubai where he covered the Arabian Peninsula, including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Yemen, often writing about foreign policy, security and economic-related issues.Jeff MasonThomson ReutersJeff Mason is a White House Correspondent for Reuters. He has covered the presidencies of Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden and the presidential campaigns of Biden, Trump, Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain. He served as president of the White House Correspondents’ Association in 2016-2017, leading the press corps in advocating for press freedom in the early days of the Trump administration. His and the WHCA's work was recognized with Deutsche Welle's "Freedom of Speech Award." Jeff has asked pointed questions of domestic and foreign leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's Kim Jong Un. He is a winner of the WHCA's “Excellence in Presidential News Coverage Under Deadline Pressure" award and co-winner of the Association for Business Journalists' "Breaking News" award. Jeff began his career in Frankfurt, Germany as a business reporter before being posted to Brussels, Belgium, where he covered the European Union. Jeff appears regularly on television and radio and teaches political journalism at Georgetown University. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism and a former Fulbright scholar.