Jerusalem at the heart of talks as U.S. and Israel reaffirm ties

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Monday to discuss the fallout from Israel’s recent strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar and its impact on efforts to secure a Gaza ceasefire.

Speaking to reporters before the meeting, Rubio said he would raise not only the ongoing Israeli military offensive in Gaza City but also internal Israeli discussions about annexing parts of the West Bank, a move critics warn would block the creation of a Palestinian state.

Rubio stressed that President Donald Trump wants the Gaza war — triggered by Hamas’s unprecedented October 7, 2023 assault on Israel — to “end,” which he said requires the release of all hostages and firm guarantees that Hamas “will never again be a threat to Israel.”

The visit was scheduled before Israel’s September 9 strike in Doha targeting Hamas officials — an operation that angered Trump and complicated U.S. relations with Qatar, which hosts the region’s largest American military base and plays a central role in ceasefire talks alongside Egypt and Washington.

“This strike doesn’t change the nature of our alliance with Israel, but we do have to address it,” Rubio said, acknowledging U.S. frustration while signaling continued support for Israel.

Rubio, a practicing Catholic, joined Netanyahu on Sunday at Jerusalem’s Western Wall, calling the city Israel’s “eternal capital” in a post on X. Netanyahu, for his part, declared that U.S.-Israel relations “have never been stronger.”

The visit comes just days before a UN summit co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia aimed at boosting international recognition of a Palestinian state — a move Netanyahu and his far-right allies firmly oppose.

The status of Jerusalem remains one of the core disputes: Israel annexed East Jerusalem in 1967, a move not recognized by the United Nations, while the Palestinian Authority seeks to make it the capital of a future sovereign state.