Trump has taken a series of unusually pro‑Israel steps, especially in his first term, that reshaped U.S. policy on Jerusalem, settlements, Iran, and Arab‑Israeli normalization. Those moves earned him strong praise from many in Israel and among his supporters, but also heavy criticism for sidelining Palestinians and breaking with decades of U.S. and international consensus.

Key moves for Israel (2017–2021)

  • Recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moved the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, reversing long‑standing U.S. policy and delighting the Israeli government.
  • Recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights , territory captured from Syria in 1967 that most of the world still considers occupied.
  • Announced that Israeli settlements in the West Bank were “not per se inconsistent with international law,” walking back the long‑held U.S. position that they were illegitimate.
  • Withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal and applied “maximum pressure” sanctions, a major strategic goal of the Israeli government which viewed the deal as too soft on Tehran.

Diplomatic and regional steps

  • Brokered the Abraham Accords , normalization deals between Israel and several Arab and Muslim‑majority states (United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, Morocco), breaking a 25‑year freeze in such agreements.
  • Promoted a detailed “Vision for Peace ” that offered a conditional Palestinian state on parts of the West Bank and Gaza while allowing Israel to annex major settlement blocs and retain broad security control.
  • Pulled the U.S. from UN bodies and processes seen as biased against Israel, including the UN Human Rights Council and UNESCO, and pushed back hard against International Criminal Court moves to investigate alleged Israeli war crimes.

Moves seen as against Palestinian interests

  • Cut hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to the Palestinian Authority and to UNRWA (the UN agency for Palestinian refugees), saying Palestinians were refusing to negotiate and that UNRWA perpetuated the conflict.
  • Closed the PLO office in Washington, drastically downgrading formal diplomatic channels with Palestinian representatives.
  • Effectively sidelined Palestinian leadership from U.S. diplomacy for years, which critics argue entrenched occupation and made a viable two‑state solution even harder to achieve.

Since returning to office (2025–2026 context)

  • Has strongly defended Israel during the latest Gaza and regional crises, emphasizing Israel’s security and disarmament of Hamas while pushing a multi‑phase peace/ceasefire framework in Gaza.
  • Used his close relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and key Arab leaders to press for a Gaza deal that includes security guarantees for Israel and regional buy‑in, presenting it as a continuation of his earlier peace initiatives.

How people see it

  • Supporters in Israel and the U.S. often describe him as “the most pro‑Israel president” in American history, pointing to Jerusalem, the Golan move, the Iran stance, and the Abraham Accords.
  • Critics say he was overwhelmingly one‑sided, weakened international law norms, marginalized Palestinians, and turned the U.S. from mediator into almost a partisan actor, which they argue fuels long‑term instability.

In forum and social‑media discussions, “what did Trump do for Israel” usually turns into a broader debate about whether those policies brought peace closer or just locked in an unequal status quo, especially after the latest Gaza war and his new peace push.

TL;DR: He moved the embassy to Jerusalem, recognized Israeli control over disputed territories, backed Israel at the UN and against Iran, brokered normalization deals with Arab states, and advanced a peace plan seen as very favorable to Israel but widely criticized by Palestinians.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.