Israeli officials 'concerned' by Trump calls for quick end to Gaza war

Donald Trump's repeated claims he would bring a swift end to the war on Gaza is causing concern for the Israeli government, officials have admitted, as the presidential candidate appears to benefit from growing dismay among Arab and Muslim voters about the Democrats' unwavering support for Israel.

Two Israeli officials told local media that Trump's pledges to urgently end the assault on Gaza could foment tension between the US and Israeli governments if the Republican challenger wins the 5 November election.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be in no rush to end the war in Gaza, which has killed at least 42,718 Palestinians, the vast majority of whom are civilians, with repeated US-Arab ceasefire efforts ending in failure  and the Israelis repeatedly blamed for the stalemate.

Trump, with his unorthodox style of leadership, could quickly lead to clashes with the equally uncompromising Netanyahu, if he enters the White House in January.

"There are internal political constraints to ending the war quickly," one of the Israeli security figures told The Times of Israel.

These comments fit with public statements by Netanyahu and other ministers about being in no rush to end the assault, despite the massive human suffering this has caused amid outcry from the UN and other international bodies.

Some government figures, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel, have even called for the expulsion of the Palestinian population from Gaza, to make way for Israeli settlers.

While such rhetoric has led to periodic spats with President Joe Biden's administration, Washington has continued to strongly support Israel's war on Gaza, supplying weapons and diplomatic backing in the UN.

This has led some Israeli officials to believe the Democrats and Kamala Harris might be easier to handle than an unpredictable Trump government.

"A fight with Trump is something he hasn’t really had to deal with, and I think it’s something he’d want to avoid, but Smotrich and Ben Gvir may not let him," one Israeli opposition member of parliament told The Times of Israel on condition of anonymity.

Trump is still widely viewed as the most pro-Israel of the two presidential candidates due to his previous policies as president and backing from hawkish right-wing figures such as Miriam Adelson. However, his recent rhetoric on the war on Gaza and Lebanon has led some Arab and Muslim voters to prefer him over Harris.

A recent Arab News-YouGov poll found that Trump had a slight lead among Arab Americans regarding voting intentions for the 5 November election, but scored far better among respondents regarding who they believed most likely to end the "Middle East conflict".

On Tuesday morning, Trump reached out to Arab voters via Truth Social, to urge them to drop support for the Democrats, who could play an important role in the outcome of several key swing states, such as Michigan.

"Lyin' Kamala has swooped so low as to pick a woman to campaign with her who lost her Congressional Race by the largest margin, 40%, in history. The record holder is Crazed Warhawk Liz Cheney, whose father, Dick, convinced Bush to go into the Middle East and KILL," he wrote.

"Now Kamala wants Arabs to vote for her? I don't think so."