Trump invites Benjamin Netanyahu to be first foreign leader to visit White House

Trump invites  Benjamin Netanyahu to be first foreign leader to visit White  House
Trump's letter to  Benjamin Netanyahu says US president  wants to discuss  'efforts to counter  common adversaries'
Donald Trump has invited  Benjamin Netanyahu to be the first foreign leader to visit the White House, in a major concession to a US ally wanted by the International Criminal Court for war  crimes.
The invitation was made in a letter from the US president,  who invited the Israeli prime minister to the White House on February  4 to  "discuss how we can bring peace to Israel and its  neighbors and efforts to counter our  common adversaries".
"I would be  honored to host you as  the first foreign leader  in my second  term," the letter  said.
Trump said he  was "not sure" the  Gaza ceasefire  would hold. Under the terms of the ceasefire, Israel and Hamas  are expected to soon  begin negotiations for a  long-term peace, which many fear will fail and lead to a return to bloodshed  after more than 15 months of  fighting. Trump's Climate and  Energy Strategies Could Fail in  Ways He Didn't Anticipate
Trump's Climate and  Energy Strategies Could Fail in  Ways He Didn't Anticipate
Mr. Trump and  Mr. Netanyahu have a difficult personal relationship, but Israel remains the  United States' closest ally in the region. Steve Witkoff,  Mr. Trump's Middle East envoy, had a tense conversation with  Mr. Netanyahu in the days  leading up to negotiations for a  ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel, the day before  Mr. Trump's  inauguration.
Since then,  Mr. Trump has lifted a ban on supplying Israel with  the bombs that had been  withheld by the Biden administration in opposition to Israel's  massive use of force against  Gaza.
Mr. Trump  suggested late last week that the Gaza Strip could be  "cleansed" and that more than 1.5 million people  would be sent to other Arab countries, in  reckless comments that appeared to reflect plans for  the ethnic cleansing of the  region. Mr. Netanyahu has been accused by the International Criminal Court (ICC) of  being responsible for targeting  the civilian  population and using "starvation as a method of warfare" during the Israeli  military campaign in Gaza, which followed the  Hamas attack on October  7, 2023. killed  about 1,200 Israelis and saw hundreds more taken  hostage. More than 120  ICC member  states are expected to arrest  Mr. Netanyahu if he  enters their territory, including most  European countries. The  United States is not a party to the  deal, and Republicans have introduced  a bill to sanction the ICC  over arrest warrants for  Mr. Netanyahu and former Israeli  Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Democrats  blocked the bill on  Tuesday.
[From Gaza to Iran, Trump  Takes Steps to  Rebuild the Middle  East Opens in  a New Window]
This comes  after the Trump administration said on Tuesday it  would offer financial incentives  for two million full-time federal  civilian employees to  resign as part of plans to drastically  reduce the size of the US  government.
The "deferred  leave program" will allow federal employees to remain on the payroll  until Sept. 30, but without having to work in person and  potentially having their duties reduced or eliminated in the meantime, according to an email sent to federal employees seen by  Reuters.
The email gives federal employees until  Feb. 6 to decide whether to  participate. Interested employees  were asked to reply to the email from a government account and  write the word  "resign."
The offer  applies to civilian  employees, except those in immigration and national  security positions and  individuals who work for the  U.S. Postal Service.
The unprecedented move comes as  Mr. Trump has used his  first days in office to  downsize, purge and  restructure the  U.S. federal government to  align it with his  policy priorities.
There are about 2.3 million civilian  employees in the  United States, not including the Postal Service. Security-related agencies  make up the bulk of the federal workforce, but hundreds of thousands work across the country in jobs overseeing  veterans' health care, inspecting agriculture and paying  government bills, among other  jobs. The email said the administration  expected to see a "more  efficient and flexible  workforce."
While the military and some agencies are likely to increase their  staff sizes, most agencies are likely to be downsized through  restructuring and  layoffs, the email said,  warning that federal employees  cannot be  assured of  keeping their  jobs.
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The National Treasury Employees Union, which represents about 150,000 federal workers, warned its members that "the email is designed to  encourage or  intimidate you  to resign" and said "we strongly urge you not to resign in  response."
Mr. Trump also signed an executive order that would  facilitate the layoffs of thousands of federal  employees by reclassifying their  employment status. "Amid the  wave of executive orders and  anti-worker policies,  it's clear that the Trump  administration's goal is to turn the federal government into a toxic environment where workers  can't stay even if they want  to," said Everett, president of the American Federation of Government  Employees. Kelley said in a statement, urging federal  employees not to make hasty  decisions.

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