President Donald Trump told aides Benjamin Netanyahu was “f—-g me” after Israel struck Hamas negotiators in Qatar.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump has seethed for weeks that Netanyahu is chasing a battlefield victory in Gaza while he wants a negotiated ceasefire.
His anger is reported to have peaked after Israel’s operation in Doha last week, which risked scuttling fragile talks. Yet he still declined to use U.S. leverage over arms or aid—and kept backing Netanyahu in public.
Per the Journal, the gripe came as Trump huddled with senior aides, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to hash out a response.
His outburst comes after the paper reported Trump had delivered a sharp rebuke to Netanyahu in a heated call the day after the Sept. 9 strike, telling him the decision to hit targets inside a key U.S. ally’s capital was unwise—and complaining that he wasn’t told in advance.
Officials have said air-launched missiles targeted Hamas representatives in Doha—an attack that killed several lower-level figures but missed top negotiators, and drew fury from mediators.
Netanyahu has argued that knocking out Hamas leadership abroad removes obstacles to a deal.
Questions are now being asked as to why there has been no public criticism of Netanyahu from a president who prides himself on dominance.
“It’s slightly baffling and counterintuitive,” said Shalom Lipner, who served seven consecutive Israeli prime ministers.
“Netanyahu’s moves have prolonged the Gaza war, created trouble for Trump with other U.S. allies in the region, and made the expansion of the Abraham Accords excruciatingly difficult.”
The Journal’s sources point to mutual political utility and years of personal courtship.
Netanyahu remains a star with GOP lawmakers and conservative media, and he rarely misses a chance to flatter Trump, who still touts the Abraham Accords and covets a Saudi-Israel breakthrough, making a rupture risky.
Trump has form for using harsh language about Netanyahu, including after the Israeli leader congratulated Joe Biden on his 2020 presidential victory, with Trump telling a journalist: “F–k him.”
But Trump’s criticism has had little impact on Netanyahu. “I’m mystified and so are many other Israelis,” said Itamar Rabinovich, a Clinton-era Israeli ambassador to the U.S.. “The only thing that’s really working for [Netanyahu] is Trump’s support.”
The relationship has, according to the Journal, settled into a pattern, with Netanyahu acting first and explaining later, confident that Trump’s irritation won’t last.
After the Doha strike, Trump is reported to have phoned Netanyahu twice—first to vent, and then to ask if the hit had been successful.
He was told it didn’t deliver the big kill, and the Gaza offensive has only intensified. “[Trump] likes winners,” former ambassador Michael Oren told the Journal.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House and the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office for comment.
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