(Washington, D.C., Feb, 11, 2026) – In response to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington for his seventh meeting with President Trump since January 2025, amid ongoing Israeli attacks that have killed nearly 600 Palestinians since the ceasefire took effect, systematic obstruction of Phase 2 of the US-brokered peace plan, and days after the Israeli Security Cabinet approved sweeping measures to annex the occupied West Bank, DAWN issues the following statement:
"President Trump should not be welcoming Netanyahu to the White House for the seventh time in a year while Israel is killing Palestinians, violating the ceasefire the United States itself brokered, and blocking every element of Phase 2 of Trump's own peace plan," said Raed Jarrar, advocacy director at DAWN. "Instead of another unconditional welcome, Trump should publicly condemn Israel's ongoing attacks on Gaza, demand the full implementation of Phase 2, including Israeli withdrawal, the start of reconstruction, and the opening of Gaza's borders, and publicly reject the annexation measures Netanyahu's government approved days ago."
"It is astonishing that just weeks after the January killings—when thousands were shot down in the streets of cities across Iran—the primary concern of Trump and Netanyahu is once again limited to Iran's missile and nuclear programs and to negotiating their own geopolitical grievances with the regime," said Omid Memarian, senior Iran analyst and communications director at DAWN. "This makes clear that Trump's rhetoric about supporting protesters or championing the Iranian people's aspirations for freedom has been purely instrumental—deployed for political convenience and devoid of genuine commitment."
Netanyahu's meeting with Trump today was originally scheduled for February 18, the day before the first leaders meeting of Trump's Board of Peace, which will focus on advancing Phase 2 and raising funds for Gaza's reconstruction. Netanyahu asked to move the meeting up by a week, allowing him to avoid the gathering, just as he skipped the Board's inaugural ceremony in Davos. He has stated the meeting will focus "first and foremost" on Iran. Phase 2 requires the deployment of an International Stabilization Force to train and support a Palestinian police force, incremental Israeli withdrawal from the more than 50 percent of Gaza it currently occupies, and reconstruction. Israel is obstructing every element: extending its occupation, allowing only 43 percent of committed aid into Gaza, banning more than three dozen humanitarian organizations, and preventing the Palestinian technocratic committee from entering the territory. In the occupied West Bank, the Security Cabinet approved on February 8 sweeping measures expanding Israeli military powers into areas designated for Palestinian control and removing constraints on settlement expansion. Trump stated in October 2025 he would not allow annexation: "It won't happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries. Israel would lose all of its support from the United States if that happened."
