Fri 05 April 2024:
In an interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, former US President Donald Trump says Israel is receiving bad press and creating negative public sentiment because of its social media strategy, which includes posting images of destruction in the Gaza Strip.
The former president has long cast himself as a stalwart defender of Israel. But on Thursday, he said Israel was “losing the PR war” in its handling of the war in Gaza because of its posts to social media showing images of destruction.
During his Thursday interview with Hewitt, Trump doubled down on his past remarks, saying that Israel was “releasing the most heinous, most horrible tapes of buildings falling down. And people are imagining there’s a lot of people in those buildings, or people in those buildings, and they don’t like it,” Trump said.
“I don’t know why they released wartime shots like that. I guess it makes them look tough. But to me, it doesn’t make them look tough,” Trump continued. “They’re losing the PR war. They’re losing it big. But they’ve got to finish what they started, and they’ve got to finish it fast, and we have to get on with life.”
When asked twice by Hewitt if Trump is “still standing 100 percent with Israel,” the former president did not answer the question directly.
Far from a one-off, Trump’s remarks reflect the solidifying of a more critical posture he is taking toward Israel, despite steadfast support for the country while he was president. During his tenure, Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moved the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the contested city. Trump has boasted that he “ fought for Israel like no president ever before.”
Trump’s remarks on Thursday came after seven people died on Monday in an Israeli strike against a convoy from World Central Kitchen, an aid organization that provides meals to civilians suffering from hunger due to conflicts. Netanyahu admitted that an “unintentional” Israeli airstrike killed “innocent people” in Gaza, adding that “we will do everything so that this thing does not happen again.”
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
______________________________________________________________
FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:
WhatsApp CHANNEL
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22
TWITTER (CLICK HERE)
https://twitter.com/IpIndependent
FACEBOOK (CLICK HERE)
https://web.facebook.com/ipindependent
YOUTUBE (CLICK HERE)
https://www.youtube.com/@ipindependent
Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!
