Some reports have cast this disconnect as indicative of a chasm between Trump and Israel. But this is a misreading. The divide is not between the president and Israel so much as between the president and Israel’s leader. Most Israelis support what Trump is doing—and oppose Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach to the war in Gaza.

As President Donald Trump sets out for the Middle East in the first international trip of his second administration, signs of disagreements have emerged between the U.S. leader and one of the men who most enthusiastically welcomed his return to office.

Netanyahu has long trumpeted his ties to Trump. But the president is sidelining him on urgent issues like the Iran nuclear talks and the conflict with Houthi rebels.

A senior Hamas official tells Newsweek that the Palestinian militant group saw "positive" potential in signs of a growing rift between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after offering the U.S. leader a political win in the form of an American hostage release ahead of his Middle East trip.

Edan Alexander was 19 when he was taken from his military base in southern Israel during Hamas’ cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023.

Hamas agreed to release Alexander, the last living U.S. hostage in Gaza, after talks with the Trump administration. His parents traveled to Israel from New Jersey.