Trump Snubs Israel, Dismantles Netanyahu’s Shield

American President Donald Trump has never been shy of expressing his emotions or how he feels, no matter his unpredictability - making his latest move less of a surprise to anyone who follows him or understands his personality.

Trump is as mercurial as it gets and his latest move has left Israel’s leadership reeling - choosing to skip Israel on his landmark return visit to the Middle East, signalling a sharp recalibration of US-Israel ties and sending an unmistakable message to Benjamin Netanyahu: Washington’s patience is running thin.

The decision marks a stunning reversal for a president once hailed by Netanyahu as Israel’s closest-ever ally. But now, in his second term, Trump appears determined to sideline, snub, and politically neuter the embattled Israeli leader, whose ongoing brutal ongoing genocide of Palestinians in Gaza and inflammatory rhetoric have placed him increasingly out of step not just with the rest of the world—but even with his once-staunch backer in the White House.

Far from a symbolic slight, Trump’s omission of Israel from his itinerary is part of a broader strategy to assert American primacy in the region on Trump’s terms, not Netanyahu’s. By bypassing Israel, Trump is asserting the USs’ independence from what many inside the administration see as Netanyahu’s self-destructive, genocidal agenda in Gaza and his attempts to drag the US into a prolonged regional quagmire.

The message is blunt: the era of blind US deference to Netanyahu’s war aims is over.

Trump’s latest moves have blindsided Israeli officials and fuelled speculation the longtime US-Israel “special relationship” is fraying. The release of the last remaining American hostage, Edan Alexander, from Hamas captivity—brokered by direct US-Hamas negotiations without Israeli involvement—sent shockwaves through the Israeli political establishment.

For many Israelis, the deal was seen as the clearest example yet of Washington charting its own course in the conflict, prioritising American lives over Israel’s broader war strategy. While the Israeli right fumed Netanyahu’s authority was being undermined, others accused him of failing to deliver on his own pledge to bring the hostages home.

Trump’s decision to recognise the US failing bombing campaign against Ansarullah in Yemen and abruptly end the seven-week reign of terror—without demanding the cessation of attacks on Israel—further deepened the sense of abandonment in Jerusalem. The fact the ceasefire was announced mere hours after a Ansarullah missile struck the grounds of Israel’s main airport only compounded Israeli feelings of betrayal.

And while Trump has maintained a tough posture toward Iran publicly, his administration has now quietly reopened backdoor talks with Tehran, even entertaining flexibility on Iran’s uranium enrichment—something Netanyahu has long lied about and conning the world into believing it was an existential threat.

The confluence of these moves amounts to what Israeli analysts are calling an “overt cancellation” of Netanyahu by Trump. Where the first Trump presidency saw Israel granted near carte blanche in the region, the second is treating Netanyahu as an obstacle to Trump’s own vision of a new, America-First Middle East.

Behind closed doors, senior Trump officials view Netanyahu not as a partner but as a liability. With growing bipartisan anger over Israel’s conduct in Gaza and Netanyahu’s increasingly erratic behaviour, Trump’s inner circle appears to be recalculating the political cost of tying itself too closely to the crazed and genocidal Israeli leader.

US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, made that calculation public during a Friday press conference, bluntly stating the US doesn’t need to inform Israel of every move it makes—a striking rhetorical slap that would have been unthinkable during Trump’s first term.

Even Netanyahu’s long-time confidant, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, made a quiet trip to Washington last week to plead for clarity amid the turbulence. Despite Israeli claims of continued alignment on some key issues, officials privately admit the relationship is no longer the lockstep alliance it once was.

For Israelis watching the once-cozy relationship erode, there’s a creeping realisation Trump’s America First agenda mightn’t just ignore Israeli interests—it may actively subvert them when conflicting with Trump’s pursuit of geopolitical wins.

Trump’s diplomatic pivot is driven by a cold calculus: he wants out of the region’s endless wars and wants wins that shore up his political capital domestically. If that means cutting deals with Iran, securing hostage releases from Hamas, or sidelining Netanyahu, Trump appears willing to break old taboos and even humiliate Netanyahu.

Trump's isolationist wing, including Vice President JD Vance and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, is gaining strength within the Republican Party, speeding up this recalibration.

Public sentiment in Israel is beginning to fracture. A survey by the Israel Democracy Institute found a slim majority of Israelis still believe Trump will prioritise Israeli security in nuclear talks with Iran—but many believe he won’t.

Netanyahu’s political playbook of leveraging America’s unconditional support to fuel his hardline domestic agenda is collapsing. Trump’s cold shoulder is more than a snub—it’s an overt warning Netanyahu’s days of carte blanche may be numbered.

For Netanyahu, his entire survival strategy has depended on the illusion of unshakable US backing – but Trump’s cancellation may well be the first stage of failure, and that’s a good thing