Reuters reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will depart for the United States on Saturday night, with a meeting with President Donald Trump taking shape for early next week, and he is expected to attend the memorial service for the late Senator Lindsey Graham in Washington on Tuesday.
Reuters reported Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will depart for the United States on Saturday night, with a meeting with President Donald Trump taking shape for early next week, and that he is expected to attend the memorial service for the late Senator Lindsey Graham in Washington on Tuesday. The report, carried by Israeli media, is the first independent wire-service confirmation of the travel timeline, which had been building through Israeli media reports over the past days.
As The Zioneer reported earlier today (Wed 03:59 and 10:34 Jerusalem), the trip was initially described as not yet finalized, with a Trump meeting not formally set, before the Prime Minister's Office confirmed that preparations were underway for a visit including both a Trump meeting and the Graham memorial. The thread leading up to today's Reuters report began on Sunday, July 12, with Israel Hayom reporting that Netanyahu's associates were examining the possibility of attending the funeral (version 1 at 12:02 Jerusalem). Within the same hour, N12's Yaron Avraham, citing sources, reported that the PM was examining the possibility, and that a Trump meeting was likely if the trip proceeded (version 2). This was followed by a report that Netanyahu was expected to attend the funeral on Tuesday and that the PMO was seeking a Trump meeting (version 4), later refined to a memorial service rather than a funeral (version 5, 12:02 Jerusalem). At 12:02 Jerusalem, journalist Anna Barsky reported that the White House had not yet given final approval for the Trump meeting (version 6). Shortly after, Israel Hayom reported that the PMO had confirmed the scheduled meeting with Trump and memorial attendance (version 7, 12:02 Jerusalem). The new Reuters report corroborates the Saturday night departure and Tuesday memorial, while describing the Trump meeting as 'taking shape.'
Background context from The Zioneer's earlier coverage shows that the possibility of a Netanyahu-Trump meeting has been in the air for weeks. On June 14, The Zioneer reported that Netanyahu was seeking a meeting with Trump in Washington after Trump's return from Europe. On July 5, Channel 14 reported that Netanyahu's close associates assessed he would depart for the US in the coming week for a Trump meeting. The White House has not yet publicly confirmed the meeting, and the exact timing and agenda remain unannounced.
What remains open: The final White House approval for the Trump meeting, which version 6 of the thread noted was still pending, has not been explicitly confirmed by Reuters. The exact date and time of the Trump meeting, and the full scope of the visit's agenda, are still emerging.
11 developments
- StrongNetanyahu and Trump agree to White House meeting
- DevelopingNetanyahu expected to depart for US next week for Trump meeting, PM's circle assesses
- StrongNetanyahu expected to fly to US on Saturday night, meeting with Trump not yet set
- DevelopingIsraeli officials doubt Trump-Netanyahu meeting will happen next week
Source and signal
- Internal intake