US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly cancelled his trip to Israel so he could accompany President Trump on his trip to the region.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has cancelled his trip scheduled for next week, per a report by I24NEWS citing a source with knowledge of the details.
According to Ynet, Hegseth cancelled the visit so that he could join President Donald Trump on his visit to the region, which will not include Israel.
Earlier in the week, Axios had reported, citing two Israeli officials, that the Defense Secretary was set to arrive in Israel on Monday to meet with Defense Minister Israel Katz and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The report stated that from Israel, Hegseth was to join the President in Saudi Arabia.
On Tuesday, President Trump announced that the Houthi rebel group had notified him that they would no longer attack US ships, and therefore, the US would halt its attacks on the Houthis.
It was later reported that Israel was not consulted on the ceasefire agreement between the US and the Houthis before Trump’s announcement.
Later in the week, Reuters reported that the United States has dropped its requirement that Saudi Arabia normalize ties with Israel as a condition for advancing civil nuclear cooperation.
Previously, nuclear negotiations were linked to a broader deal involving a US-Saudi defense agreement and the normalization of Saudi-Israel relations. However, Saudi officials have maintained that they will not formalize ties with Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state, a position that has gained further traction amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
