The phone conversation of Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Stephen Vitkov, surprised the aides of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Guardian's analyst Peter Beaumont writes about this.
Calling Qatar from Doha last Friday evening, when Shabbat had already begun, Witkoff announced that he would come to Israel and meet with Netanyahu.
Rejecting an offer from Netanyahu's aides to meet after the Jewish holiday, Witkoff, 67, a billionaire lawyer and real estate developer, sharply insisted on meeting in the morning.
At the meeting, which some Israeli media described as "tense", Witkoff delivered his message. The newly elected president emphasized that he wants a ceasefire agreement for the sake of the hostages. Trump wanted the war in Gaza to end. he had other things to do.
