Trump says Israel has to 'be careful' as it is losing international respect

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) - Former US President Donald Trump on Monday said that Israel has to be careful in its ongoing war on Gaza, as Israel is losing a lot of the world's support.

Speaking to Israeli daily Hayom, Trump – who is also seeking a return to the Oval Office – also said Israel has to finish its war on Gaza and engage in a peace plan and restore normal life in Israel.

"You have to finish up, you have to get the job done. And you have to get onto peace, to get onto a normal life for Israel, and for everybody else," Trump said.

Despite his support for Israel’s war, he criticized scenes of destruction in Gaza, saying: "Oh, that's a terrible portrait. It's a very bad picture for the world."

He added that Israel should draw the fighting in Gaza to a close. "You have to finish up your war."

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Palestinian territory since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

More than 32,000 Palestinians have since been killed and nearly 74,700 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war, now in its 171st day, has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.