Benjamin Netanyahu kept out of public view at White House amid growing Trump fury

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was kept out of the public eye during his meeting on Tuesday with President Donald Trump at the Oval Office.

Little information or imagery emerged from the eighth meeting between the world leaders. However, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins reported that the prime minister left the West Wing at 12:26 p.m. after an over-an-hour meeting with Trump.

Images from before the meeting showed Netanyahu arriving through a side door at the White House, away from the press. Ukraine’s Prime Minister Volodymyr Zelensky also met with President Trump on Tuesday in a similarly quiet get-together.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the conclusion of the meetings on social media. She did not provide a reason for the unusually quiet meetings.

“President Trump has concluded his meetings in the Oval Office with President Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Netanyahu. Both meetings were positive and productive!” Leavitt posted on X.

A White House official said today’s discussion was kept behind closed doors and away from the press because the president considers these working meetings, a move that surprised many, considering that he hasn’t previously stopped Trump from speaking to reporters. Following the meeting, Netanyahu’s team quickly released photos of the prime minister sitting next to Trump in the Oval Office, alongside Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and other officials.

The meeting between Trump and Netanyahu comes amid increasing reports of the two leaders’ crumbling relationship due to the war in Iran.

Reports of a weakened relationship between the pair started in June, as Washington neared a deal with Tehran to end the war in the Middle East. With Netanyahu strongly disapproving of a deal, Trump reportedly yelled at him over the phone, calling him “crazy” and claiming, “you’d be in prison if it weren’t for me.”