Mr. Trump: Israel is losing the PR war in the Gaza Strip
Former US President Donald Trump said that the painful images in the Gaza Strip caused Israel to "lose the PR war", and criticized the Tel Aviv government.
Mr. Trump, the Republican presidential candidate for the upcoming election, criticized Israel for releasing videos of destroyed buildings in the Gaza Strip.
The former president described the images as "horrifying" and "brutal", believing that it was causing Israel to lose points in the eyes of many people.
People are imagining there are a lot of people in those ruined buildings and they don't like it. I don't know why Israel released wartime photos like that," Mr. Trump stated in a program published on April 4. "I guess these things make Israel look tougher. But to me, it doesn't make them look tough. They are losing the PR war. They are losing big," Al Jazeera quoted Mr. Trump as saying. .
When asked if he still "100%" supported Israel, Mr. Trump did not answer directly but said that Israel should end the war "quickly" and "return to normalcy." During his time in office, Mr. Trump described himself as the closest president to Israel in American history.
He decided to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which both Palestine and Israel claim as their capital. However, Mr. Trump "turned around", harshly criticizing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, when he admitted that Mr. Joe Biden was legally elected in the 2020 presidential election.
In an interview with the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom last month, Trump issued a similar warning about Israel losing international support as the conflict drags on. He also criticized current president Biden's policy on the war in the Gaza Strip, according to Al Jazeera. In fact, the US under Mr. Biden is also gradually changing its stance on the war in the Gaza Strip.
In a statement on April 4, the White House said President Biden warned Prime Minister Netanyahu that continued US support for Israel would depend on "specific and measurable steps" by Tel Aviv. in protecting civilians.
The warning came after the Israeli military allegedly launched an airstrike in the Gaza Strip, killing seven World Central Kitchen aid workers, including an American-Canadian citizen.
The latest conflict between Israel and Hamas broke out in October 2023 after a surprise attack by Hamas on Israeli territory. In response, Tel Aviv launched a military campaign in Gaza, vowing to destroy Hamas.
According to the Gaza Strip health authority, as of April 4, more than 33,000 Palestinians were killed and more than 75,600 others were injured because of Israel's military campaign.
