Trump threatens to cut aid to Israel if the judiciary does not dismiss corruption cases against Netanyahu.

Donald Trump has once again showcased his lack of filters and his penchant for positioning himself as the supreme authority of the planet. In a message posted on his social media platform, Truth, late Saturday night (early Sunday morning in mainland Spain), the President of the United States makes an unusual gesture to support Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his ally: he demands that the Israeli judiciary drop the three corruption cases against the leader and threatens to cancel financial aid to the country if this does not happen.

“FREE BIBI!” (Netanyahu’s popular nickname), Trump writes in capital letters, calling his partner a “war hero” and emphasizing that he is essential to contain Iran in the region. Netanyahu has publicly thanked him via the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). “Together we will make the Middle East great again,” he states in his message. Israeli media describe the U.S. president’s gesture as “unprecedented interference.”

Netanyahu was scheduled to testify before the judge tomorrow, Monday, but will not do so after all. The judges, who had rejected the Prime Minister’s request to postpone the testimony on Friday, reversed their decision early Sunday afternoon and delayed the hearing.

“How is it possible that the Prime Minister of Israel is forced to sit in court all day for nothing?” asks the Republican leader, convinced that this “mockery of justice” and these “out-of-control prosecutors” will interfere with ongoing negotiations with Iran and Hamas. He describes it as a “witch hunt” similar to the one he himself has experienced from some judges in the United States.

Netanyahu has been accused since 2019 of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust due to his alleged relationships to gain personal and political benefits with influential people who supposedly manipulated media content in his favor. He denies the charges. The legal case, which began in 2020 and includes three criminal cases, has faced constant delays amid the military offensive against Gaza.

In a twist to his threats, the U.S. president implies that the multimillion-dollar annual aid that Israel receives from its main ally, Washington, is in jeopardy due to these ongoing processes against Netanyahu. This amounts to approximately $3.8 billion in military aid (about €3.25 billion), according to estimates from the newspaper Haaretz. “We will not tolerate this,” he warns, implying where this might lead.

This is the second statement of this kind that the U.S. president has published on Truth in three days to pressure the Israeli judiciary, although Sunday’s statement is more forceful than the one from last Thursday. “America spends billions of dollars a year, much more than any other country, to protect and support Israel,” he warns as part of his attack. “We just experienced a great victory [against Iran] with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu in charge, and this significantly tarnishes our victory,” he adds.

Trump describes the proceedings against Netanyahu as a “political witch hunt.” A witch hunt, he adds, similar to the one he himself faced. “It’s terrible what they are doing to Bibi Netanyahu in Israel. He is a war hero and a prime minister who has worked with the U.S. to achieve great success in eliminating the dangerous Iranian nuclear threat,” Trump points out. The content and tone of the president’s message have been praised by several members of the government led by Netanyahu and criticized by some opposition members in Parliament.

On June 13, Netanyahu launched an offensive against Iran, known as the 12-day war, which theoretically ended on June 24. In some circles, this offensive was seen as a desperate move by the Prime Minister to free himself from the threats of the judiciary, Parliament, the Gaza war, and street protests that could jeopardize his continuity in office.

Trump adds in his message that “it is important to emphasize that right now [Netanyahu] is negotiating an agreement with Hamas that will include the recovery of hostages,” referencing the fifty or so captives (more than half already presumed dead) being held in the Strip since October 7, 2023, when about 1,200 people were killed in Israeli territory by Hamas and 250 were kidnapped.

For months, an agreement has been on the table. The Palestinian Islamists agree to return everyone, but in exchange for an end to Israeli attacks and the withdrawal of troops from the enclave, something that Netanyahu does not accept.

The forum that groups the majority of those kidnapped has again demanded an agreement on Sunday. Following the government’s decision that there are no issues preventing residents of neighboring areas from returning, “there are no impediments to ending the fighting in Gaza,” they state in a communiqué. They conclude that “the mission to defeat Hamas has been completed” and “Israel has succeeded in eliminating the threat.” This, the forum believes, paves the way for achieving “a comprehensive agreement for the return of the 50 hostages.”

In another message on Truth, Donald Trump calls for “reaching an agreement in Gaza and recovering the hostages.” Following the precedent of the ceasefire achieved by the U.S. president between Israel and Iran, the other two mediators, Qatar and Egypt, are collaborating with Washington to seize the momentum and advance toward peace in Gaza.

Mahmoud Mardawi, a senior Hamas official, states from his Telegram channel that Netanyahu demands “impossible conditions” to prevent a ceasefire and the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

Forced Displacements in Gaza

Meanwhile, the Israeli army has ordered new forced displacements of the population in the northern Strip, compelling them to leave the areas that the occupying troops consider combat zones. Subsequently, attacks in different neighborhoods of Gaza City have continued, resulting in numerous casualties reaching medical centers, according to health authorities.

The death toll in the Strip due to the Israeli offensive has already surpassed 56,000 in a year and a half, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Just this Sunday, the fatalities among Palestinians amount to at least 37, according to that source. One Israeli soldier has also died, raising the total losses among occupying troops to 20 in June, the deadliest month for the army in the past year.