Jerome Sokolovsky

U.N.

Secretary General Antonio Guterres says the raid amounts to unauthorized entry.

He's demanding Israel respect the, quote, inviolability of UNRWA premises.

Israel says some UNRWA employees took part in the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023.

Jerome Sokolovsky, NPR News, Tel Aviv.

This will be the fifth time Netanyahu visits the White House since President Trump's current term began in January.

An Israeli government spokesperson says the meeting will take place on December 29th and that the prime minister will stay in Washington until after the new year.

Netanyahu said on Sunday that he wants to use the meeting to talk about how to end Hamas rule in Gaza.

Fighting in Gaza has continued sporadically despite a ceasefire in October.

But a Hamas leader told NPR in Qatar that if there are negotiations leading to a Palestinian state, the group would agree to not use its weapons against Israel.

Netanyahu was at a press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz when a reporter asked about his six-year-long corruption trial.

Would the prime minister leave public life if Israel's president grants his pardon request?

He simply answered no.

Netanyahu also said he expects to meet President Trump before the end of the month and to discuss the next stage of a ceasefire deal with Hamas.

Second stage is achieved.

We're about to finish the first stage.

We're almost, we're there, almost.

Israel still expects to recover the body of the last Israeli hostage, and Netanyahu said he also wants to talk to Trump about how to end Hamas rule in Gaza.

Jerome Sokolovsky, NPR News, Tel Aviv.

Rafah Crossing has been closed since Israel took control of the border area in May 2024.