"I believe that today we're taking a critical step towards both ending the war in Gaza and setting the stage for dramatically advancing peace in the Middle East," Netanyahu said.

US President Donald Trump will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday for high-stakes talks aimed at pushing an elusive Gaza peace plan over the line.

Defeated presidential candidate Kamala Harris has called Mr Trump “unchecked, incompetent, unhinged” in biting remarks at an event on Sunday.

Netanyahu said that Israel will not allow an independent Palestinian state to exist. Before President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a press conference following their bilateral meeting,

Questions have arisen over whether Benjamin Netanyahu was reading from a script when he apologised to Qatar, following the release of a black-and-white photo by the White House.

The call to Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani came as Netanyahu met with US President Donald Trump in Washington.