Newsweek
Donald Trump has been accused of violating federal law by allegedly calling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the ceasefire deal the U.S. is helping to negotiate between Israel and Hamas.
The former president allegedly made the call on August 14, according to Axios, which cited two unnamed ‘U.S. sources who were briefed on the call.’
The next day, however, Netanyahu’s office denied that the call took place. In a statement quoted by The Times of Israel, a spokesperson said: ‘Contrary to media reports, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not speak yesterday with former President Donald Trump.’
It is unclear if a call between Trump and Netanyahu took place and Newsweek has contacted representatives of the former president for comment.
The Logan Act
If Trump did make the call, he would potentially be breaking the law as the Logan Act, enacted in 1799, prohibits unauthorized private citizens from negotiating with foreign governments on behalf of the U.S.
American Muckrakers, an organization that states it seeks to hold politicians and officials accountable, has filed a request with the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of State.
Axios cited one source as saying that Trump’s alleged call was intended to encourage Netanyahu to take the ceasefire deal that was on the table. However, the unnamed source told the outlet that they did not know what the actual conversation was.
‘Massive Crime’
Netanyahu met with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence in late July, when the Israeli Prime Minister was in the U.S. to meet with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
At a press conference last Thursday, Trump said of Netanyahu: ‘I did encourage him to get this over with. It has to get over with fast…Get your victory and get it over with. It has to stop, the killing has to stop.’
Status of Ceasefire Deal
It comes after Hamas said it had agreed to a ceasefire proposal presented by the U.S. but opposes what it argues are ‘new conditions’ added by Israel.
Senior Hamas official and spokesperson Basem Naim told Newsweek that Hamas ‘welcomed’ Biden’s announcement on May 31, along with a subsequent United Nations Security Council resolution endorsing it on June 11, and that the group ‘confirmed its readiness for immediate implementation and submitted its approval of the mediators’ proposal on July 2.’
Naim then accused Netanyahu of deliberately disrupting the process by conducting new attacks and seeking additional measures.
Despite this, on Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he had ‘a very constructive meeting’ with Netanyahu, who had ‘confirmed’ to him ‘that Israel supports the bridging proposal’ put forth by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt in a bid to push through the deadlocked negotiations.
Blinken added that ‘the next important step is for Hamas to say ‘yes.’