John Haltiwanger & Rishi Iyengar
Foreign Policy / May 22, 2025
The Israeli leader is facing growing pressure, even from Trump, over his prosecution of the Gaza war.
As the Israeli military escalates ground operations in Gaza, Netanyahu is facing rising domestic and international pressure to shift course amid a worsening humanitarian crisis there.
In a sign that he’s beginning to feel the heat, Netanyahu on May 18 announced that Israel would partially end its nearly three-month blockade on aid into Gaza. The blockade, which sparked concerns of famine, was condemned worldwide. Netanyahu said his decision came after warnings from allies, including U.S. senators, who told him “images of mass famine” would jeopardize support for Israel.
Even Trump, whose 2024 election victory was seen as a win for Netanyahu, has in recent days raised alarm about Palestinians starving. Trump officials have also been critical of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, warning that it’s undermining Israel’s standing.
The U.S. president did not make a stop in Israel during his trip to the Middle East last week. And although Israel denied that Trump was snubbing Netanyahu, this came amid questions over whether the Trump administration has been bypassing the Israeli leader on various issues.
Trump 2.0 has still been very supportive of Israel—but not to the extent that Netanyahu appeared to expect based on their history. At a time when Netanyahu says Israel is deploying a “massive force to take control of all of the Gaza Strip,” the White House this week said Trump has “made it very clear” that he wants the war to end.
The leaders of France, the United Kingdom, and Canada also issued fierce criticism of the Israeli government this week. They described the situation in Gaza as “intolerable” and threatened to take “concrete actions” if Israel didn’t “cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid.”
Though Israel’s traditional allies are growing impatient with its actions in the war, they were also quick to condemn the killings of two Israeli Embassy staffers—Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim—in Washington on Wednesday. The suspect in the shooting, which occurred outside the Capital Jewish Museum, reportedly shouted “Free Palestine” as he was being arrested.
Netanyahu and far-right ministers in his government blamed the killings on critics of the war in Gaza, including opposition politician Yair Golan, who recently warned that Israel was at risk of becoming a “pariah state” because of its actions in the conflict.
Golan, a former general, said, “A sane country does not wage war against civilians, does not kill babies as a pastime, and does not engage in mass population displacement.”
Criticism at home
Though Golan’s provocative words sparked outrage among politicians in Netanyahu’s coalition, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Golan’s comments reflect “what many people think.”
Recent polling has shown that a strong majority of Israelis (about 70 percent) would support ending the war if the remaining 58 hostages held by Hamas, of whom 20 are thought to still be alive, were released. Hostage family members, who are among Netanyahu’s biggest critics, have also expressed opposition to continuing the war.
Yotam Cohen, the brother of Nimrod Cohen, an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldier who was captured by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, and is believed to still be alive, told SitRep that the “vast majority” of Israelis “want the hostages to be released and brought back even in the price of ending the war.”
Cohen said the Israeli government is ignoring the will of the people. “Ending the war would be the right thing to do for the hostages, for us as hostage families, and for the entirety of the people of Israel,” Cohen said.
Critics of the war have contended that Netanyahu—who is on trial for corruption—is only continuing it for political reasons, as far-right members of his fragile coalition have threatened to collapse the government if Netanyahu ends the fighting.
“It’s unfortunate that the prime minister and his coalition partners are not listening to what the people of Israel have been wanting,” Ruby Chen, the father of American Israeli IDF soldier and hostage Itay Chen, who is believed to have been killed on Oct. 7, 2023, told SitRep on Monday.
As the longest-serving prime minister in Israel’s history, Netanyahu has exhibited a remarkable ability for political survival throughout his career. Though the Israeli leader finds himself in an increasingly precarious position, it’s far too early to make predictions on Netanyahu’s political future. And despite growing opposition to his prosecution of the Gaza war, Netanyahu doesn’t seem to be fully backing down and on Thursday said Trump still supports his objectives.
John Haltiwanger is a reporter at Foreign Policy
Rishi Iyengar is a reporter at Foreign Policy
Foreign Policy’s Situation Report
