US President Donald Trump says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is headed to Washington next week, setting up a high-profile meeting as the US-Israeli war on Iran enters its fifth month.
Mr Netanyahu’s office said earlier that he will travel to Washington DC on Monday and will meet with Mr Trump on Tuesday.
Mr Netanyahu will also attend deceased US Senator Lindsey Graham’s funeral, his office said.
Mr Trump’s confirmation came during remarks at a rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, held three months after an assassination attempt upended the original event.
In an hour-long address that swung from reflective to combative, the US president again attacked what he called the “fake news media” and revived talk of a prohibited third term.
“This place is really the largest group of Trump derangement syndrome people ever put together at one time,” Mr Trump told the media gala at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington.
He opened on a relatively conciliatory note, recalling the April attack by a gunman that forced his evacuation from the dinner.
“The show must go on,” he said.
But the tone quickly hardened. Mr Trump launched into a wide-ranging, often rambling critique that began with journalists and then turned toward Democratic rivals.
The media gala took place at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington DC
Earlier in the evening, Mr Trump shrugged and laughed while shaking hands with a Wall Street Journal team that reported on his ties to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Later, he joked that “this has not been an easy evening, all these awards”, as journalists collected prizes for coverage of the Republican’s second presidency.
He also returned to the idea of serving a third term barred under the US constitution — while insisting he was not serious.
“Just like my presidency, the second time is always better. And the third time is better yet,” Mr Trump said, before adding, “I’m only kidding”.
He then escalated the bit, producing a red “Trump 2028” cap and saying he was “pleased to announce my intention to – and this is a somewhat of a scoop – my intention to run for a fourth term as president of the United States”.
Mr Trump tosses his ‘TRUMP 2028’ hat to an attendee
Mr Trump also cast US Senator Chuck Schumer as Palestinian.
“I am going to send him [Schumer] a beautiful Palestinian outfit tomorrow, so he can greet Bibi Netanyahu when he comes to town next week,” Mr Trump said.
“He turned Palestinian,” Mr Trump said of Mr Schumer, who is Jewish, while also joking that sharia law was Mr Schumer’s “new founding”.
US Muslim and Jewish advocacy groups have previously criticised Mr Trump for calling Schumer, the top Senate Democrat, a Palestinian, with the rights groups saying Trump uses the term disrespectfully as a slur and as an insult.
At points, the speech took on the cadence of his campaign rallies, and Mr Trump even poked fun at his own speechwriters when some lines did not land.
He closed by telling the room he had “tremendous respect” for the journalists present, while adding: “When I’m gone, you’re all going to be broke.”
Bad blood
Mr Trump, attending his first White House Correspondents Dinner after years of bad blood with the press, said he intended to return next year as well.
His appearance came under heightened security, three months after an alleged assassination attempt triggered a chaotic evacuation when shots were fired at the Washington Hilton and the black-tie dinner was called off.
California man Cole Allen, 31, has pleaded not guilty to charges including attempting to kill the president.
On this occasion, the US Secret Service tightened the perimeter. Police and National Guard officers closed nearby roads and erected a large security cordon, though guests entering the venue faced only a cursory check.
Organisers moved the dinner from the Hilton to the Waldorf Astoria — a former Trump hotel — shrinking the crowd for what they described as a smaller, “more intimate” gathering.
Members of the National Guard outside the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) dinner
“Let’s try this again,” said CBS correspondent Weijia Jiang, the outgoing president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, who presided over the previous dinner.
“Tonight our message is this: We are back. We will not be intimidated. We will not let an act of violence have the final word.”
Incoming WHCA president Jacqui Heinrich said the event would return to the Washington Hilton next year.
‘Threat picture’
US Secret Service Director Sean Curran was spotted standing in the entrance hall watching guests arrive, an AFP reporter saw.
Attendees queued to present a QR code and identification before entering the atrium where the dinner was held.
Alongside Mr Trump’s speech, the rescheduled programme included a performance by mentalist Oz Pearlman and a tribute to a Secret Service agent who helped stop the alleged gunman in April.
Mr Curran defended the original security operation, telling reporters, “It did work, the system worked”. He said a cordon had prevented the alleged attacker from reaching the main hall in April.
But Mr Curran — who was at Mr Trump’s side when an assassin’s bullet hit the Republican’s ear at an election rally in 2024 — warned that threats against top US officials were “off the charts”.
“The threat picture and environment is as large as I’ve ever seen it,” added Mr Curran.
The Trump-Netanyahu meeting will come as the US-Israeli war on Iran reaches five months in duration.
