Israeli PM spoke of ‘warm’ discussion with US president-elect amid pressure from Trump camp for progress on hostage releases

Benjamin Netanyahu has said he spoke to Donald Trump over the weekend about his plans in Syria and efforts to secure the release of hostages in Gaza amid a wave of strikes in the territory.

The Israeli prime minister said in an address on Sunday night: “We had a very friendly, warm and important discussion. We discussed the need to complete Israel’s victory and we spoke at length about the efforts we are making to free our hostages.”