Washington, DC [US], July 8 (ANI): Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday (local time) that he had sent a letter to the Nobel Prize Committee nominating US President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. He personally handed a copy of the nomination letter to Trump during their dinner at the White House.

Trump hosted Netanyahu for dinner at the White House on Monday (local time).

'The President has already realised great opportunities. He forged the Abraham Accords. He's forging peace as we speak in one country, in one region after the other. So, I want to present to you, Mr. President, the letter I sent to the Nobel Prize Committee. It's nominating you for the Peace Prize, which is well deserved, and you should get it,' Netanyahu said while presenting the nomination letter to Trump.

After receiving the letter, Trump thanked Netanyahu and said that he was not aware of it. 'Thank you very much. This I did not know. Wow, thank you very much. Coming from you in particular, this is very meaningful,' Trump said.

In remarks to reporters while sitting across from Prime Minister Netanyahu for dinner at the White House, Netanyahu expressed appreciation for Trump's leadership.

'I want to express the appreciation and admiration not only of all Israelis, but of the Jewish people and many, many admirers around the world, for your leadership, your leadership of the free world, your leadership of a just cause, and the pursuit of peace and security which you are leading in many lands, but now especially in the Middle East. We have great opportunities. President has an extraordinary team, and I think our teams together make an extraordinary combination to meet challenges and seize opportunities,' Netanyahu said.

At the start of their dinner meeting, Trump said he and the Israeli PM have 'had a tremendous success together' and noted that they will have a lot of great results.

'It's an honour to have Bibi (Netanyahu) and Sara (Netanyahu's wife) with us. They've in mind for a long time and we had a tremendous success together. And I think it will only go on to be even greater success in the future. So, it's really nice to have you at the White House. It's nothing like the White House...We've worked together for a long time. We've done well together. We had a great time, we say it's a lot of work, but we had a great result recently. and we're going to have a lot of great results, so it's great to have you,' Trump

Earlier, Netanyahu held a meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Calling his meeting with Rubio 'substantive', he said that they talked about strengthening ties between Israel and the US and the shared challenges faced by the two nations.

'This evening, I met at Blair House in Washington with the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio. We held a substantive and important conversation about strengthening the alliance between Israel and the U.S., and about the shared challenges we face in the regional and international arena,' Netanyahu said in a statement shared on social media platform X.

https://x.com/netanyahu/status/1942359676018164132

Before departing for the United States on Sunday, Netanyahu stated that Israeli negotiators had been given clear instructions to achieve a ceasefire under conditions that Israel has accepted, according to Al Jazeera.

'We've gotten a lot of the hostages out, but pertaining to the remaining hostages, quite a few of them will be coming out,' he told reporters, adding that his meeting with Trump could 'definitely help advance this' deal.

Of the 251 captives taken by Hamas during the October 2023 attack, 49 remain in Gaza, including 27 whom the Israeli military says are dead.

Netanyahu had previously rejected Hamas's response to a draft US-backed ceasefire proposal, calling the demands 'unacceptable', Al Jazeera reported. The draft deal, conveyed via Qatari and Egyptian mediators, outlines a 60-day ceasefire, a phased release of captives, Israeli soldiers withdrawals from parts of Gaza, and discussions on ending the war altogether. (ANI)