Frustration is brewing behind closed doors in Washington, as President Donald Trump finds himself at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over recent military actions in the Middle East. Despite the outward appearance of unity, sources reveal that Trump’s patience has been tested by Netanyahu’s hardline tactics—particularly following Israel’s controversial strike on Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar, on September 9, 2025. According to The Wall Street Journal and corroborated by multiple outlets, Trump vented to senior aides, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, that Netanyahu is “f****** me.” The expletive-laden remark, though never made public by Trump himself, underscores a growing rift between the two leaders over how best to address the ongoing conflict with Hamas.
The root of Trump’s frustration lies in Netanyahu’s preference for military force over diplomatic negotiation. As reported by The Times of Israel and Ukrainian News Agency, Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire for a ceasefire to end the nearly two-year war with Hamas. Netanyahu, meanwhile, remains steadfast in his belief that only overwhelming force will compel Hamas to surrender. “Netanyahu’s moves have prolonged the Gaza war, created trouble for Trump with other US allies in the region and made the expansion of the Abraham Accords excruciatingly difficult,” explained Shalom Lipner, a think tank fellow and former adviser in the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, speaking to The Wall Street Journal.
The September 9 strike in Qatar, which targeted Hamas negotiators, marked a boiling point. The attack not only threatened to derail fragile peace talks but also caught the White House off guard. Trump reportedly learned about the operation from US military sources tracking the strike in real time, and his subsequent efforts to notify Qatari officials came too late. The White House called the airstrike an “unfortunate incident” and clarified that it was not in the interests of either Israel or the United States. The operation itself failed to eliminate the senior Hamas officials it targeted, killing only lower-level representatives, according to former Israeli ambassador Michael Oren. “The chances are, if our operation in Doha succeeded, Trump wouldn’t have condemned it, he would have taken credit for it,” Oren noted, highlighting Trump’s penchant for associating himself with successful outcomes.
Despite his private exasperation, Trump has so far resisted any move to publicly pressure Netanyahu. As The Wall Street Journal observed, the American president is “unlikely to publicly break with him.” Trump’s support for Israel remains a cornerstone of his foreign policy, and he frequently touts his role in brokering the Abraham Accords during his first term. He has also declined to call for an immediate deal with Hamas to end the war in Gaza, instead backing Israeli military operations and demanding that Hamas release the hostages it abducted during its October 7, 2023, assault on Israel.
This steadfast backing has left some in Washington and Tel Aviv puzzled. “It’s slightly baffling and counterintuitive,” Lipner said, referencing Trump’s willingness to allow Netanyahu to act in defiance of his wishes without consequence. Itamar Rabinovich, a former Israeli ambassador to the US, echoed this sentiment: “He’s under siege and makes mistakes. The only thing that’s really working for him is Trump’s support.”
Netanyahu, for his part, appears adept at navigating Trump’s mercurial moods. According to people familiar with his thinking and as detailed by The Wall Street Journal, Netanyahu has cultivated strong ties with US lawmakers and conservative media outlets favored by Trump supporters. He frequently refers to Trump as “the best friend Israel has ever had in the White House,” and his influence with Congress and the Republican media helps sustain the relationship even when tensions rise. Omer Dostri, a former spokesperson for Netanyahu, described the ties as “very, very tight.”
These personal dynamics are further complicated by the leaders’ shared self-image as outsiders battling corrupt elites and facing criminal investigations in their respective countries. “Both believe they have faced persecution from their countries’ elites, including criminal trials, and both see themselves as outsiders reforming a corrupt system,” reported The Wall Street Journal. This sense of kinship may explain why Netanyahu feels he can risk Trump’s ire, knowing it likely won’t last. As one observer put it, “Netanyahu knows that while the White House may grumble a bit, there really is no downside to an ‘ask forgiveness, not permission’ approach.”
Following the Qatar strike, Trump held two phone calls with Netanyahu—one to express his displeasure and another, more cordial conversation about the operation’s outcome. Trump also met with Qatar’s prime minister and praised the Gulf emirate as a “great ally,” pledging that Israel would not attack on Qatari soil again. Secretary of State Rubio visited both Israel and Qatar to discuss the fallout, but offered no new criticism of Israel for the controversial strike.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu has stood firm in his demands for ending the war: Hamas must lay down its arms, release the remaining 48 hostages, and its leadership must leave Gaza. If these conditions aren’t met, he insists, Israel will continue its campaign of aerial and ground assaults. “This is the principle we established. It’s a principle we follow. It hasn’t changed,” Netanyahu said, refusing to rule out future strikes in neighboring countries where Hamas negotiators might be found.
Trump’s reluctance to publicly challenge Netanyahu has not gone unnoticed within his own political coalition. While support for Israel remains high among Republicans—two-thirds have a favorable view of Netanyahu, according to a Gallup poll in July—some cracks are starting to show. Members of Trump’s MAGA coalition, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, have openly criticized Israel’s actions in Gaza, accusing the country of “genocide.” Still, Trump continues to boast about his administration’s achievements in the Middle East and is expected to highlight his peacemaking efforts during his upcoming speech at the UN General Assembly.
Despite reports of friction, Israeli officials maintain the relationship remains strong. A senior Israeli official dismissed suggestions of acrimony as “fake news,” telling The Wall Street Journal that “American and Israeli interests are closely aligned.” Netanyahu himself announced he was invited to join Trump at the White House next week during the UN General Assembly, stating that all recent conversations with Trump since the Qatar strike were “good.”
For now, the partnership between Trump and Netanyahu endures, shaped as much by personal affinity and political necessity as by shared strategic interests. Whether Trump’s patience will hold in the face of future disagreements remains to be seen. But for both leaders, the benefits of maintaining a united front—however strained in private—continue to outweigh the costs of a public split.