As Netanyahu wraps Washington visit, progress on a Gaza ceasefire remains murky

WASHINGTON (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attended a memorial service on Thursday for two slain Israeli Embassy staffers as he wraps up a four-day visit to Washington in which talks with President Donald Trump, White House aides and lawmakers focused on finding a pathway to a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

But as Netanyahu gets set to head back to Israel, it is unclear if there was any breakthrough on sealing a Trump-backed 60-day truce between Israel and Hamas, which the U.S. leader believes can lead to a permanent end to the 21-month war in Gaza.

Netanyahu said in a video released Thursday that he is trying to wrap up the U.S.-backed deal but stressed it will be “temporary” and would be aimed at releasing the final 50 hostages who remain in captivity in Gaza.

The prime minister also underscored that in any potential ceasefire agreement he will not budge from his fundamental demand that Hamas lay down its arms and no longer have any governing or military capabilities—something the group so far has rejected.

“These are our basic conditions,” Netanyahu said. “If this can be achieved through negotiations — so much the better. If it is not achieved through negotiations in 60 days, we will achieve it in other ways — by using force, the force of our heroic army.”

With his attendance at the memorial for the slain embassy staffers, Netanyahu once again sought to spotlight “antisemitic brutality” that Jews around the globe have faced as the Israeli Defense Forces have waged operations in Gaza.

Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, 26, two colleagues who had been on the verge of getting engaged, were fatally shot May 22 as they were leaving a reception for young diplomats at Washington’s Capital Jewish Museum.

Sara Netanyahu, the Israeli leader’s wife and a psychologist, signed a letter of condolence at the embassy, saying, “May their memory be blessed.” Family members of the two were among those attending the service, held at the Israeli embassy, the prime minister’s office said in a statement.

A suspect was arrested in the shootings and shouted “Free Palestine” as he was led away. Charging documents said he later told police, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza.”

Trump views the current moment as a potential turning point in the brutal conflict that has left more than 57,000 dead in the Palestinian territory. The Gaza Health Ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its death count.

Hamas is still capable of landing fatal blows to Israeli forces. But U.S. officials believe that the group’s been significantly diminished as its centralized command and control capabilities have deteriorated over the course of the conflict. Meanwhile, Hamas’ chief backer Iran was badly battered last month by 12 days of strikes by Israel and the United States on Tehran’s key nuclear facilities.

U.S. officials remain hopeful that restarting high-level negotiations — mediated by Egypt and Qatar and including White House envoy Steve Witkoff — will happen soon and could bring progress.

“We’re closer than we’ve been in quite a while, and we’re hopeful, but we also recognize there’s still some challenges in the way,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters while attending the annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Senior Trump administration officials, including Witkoff, met with Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer as well as Qatari officials at the White House on Tuesday to discuss sticking points in the talks. This included Israel’s desire for its military to retain control over parts of Gaza during a potential 60-day truce, according to a White House official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Asked about the meeting this week, Trump did not confirm that “secret” talks had happened, but said if they did, he hoped the engagement “gets us to where we want to be.”

“We want to have peace. We want to get the hostages back. And I think we’re close to doing it,” Trump added.

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Federman reported from Jerusalem.