Donald Trump at AIPAC
Donald Trump at AIPACReuters

Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Sunday said he would love to broker a peace settlement between the Israelis and the Palestinians, The Jewish Insider reported.

Trump’s comments came during a campaign rally in Terre Haute, Indiana, where primaries will be held on Tuesday. Trump said that seeing Israel and the Palestinians sign on a peace deal would be a “beauty” in spite of the situation on the ground.

“I am going to try and make that deal just because – man, would that be a beauty – if you like deals. I like deals. I do deals. That would be great,” he said.

Trump noted that “a lot of my Jewish friends say, ‘You will never be able to make the deal’ – because there are so many years of hatred, especially on the other side. You know, they grow up as young children hating, hating, hating Israel. I think the deal can be made. But we got to be smart and we got to use our best people…And I know the best people.”

He also said, “I’ve never met a person from Israel that didn’t want to make the deal. But it is just a very hard deal to make because it’s years of — of whatever. But I’d love to be able to make that deal.”

Trump also questioned why the U.S. is funding the United Nations but is not demanding the body use its power to broker a deal to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, noted The Jewish Insider.

The billionaire had in the past sparked some controversy with regards to the Israel-Palestinian issue, when he said he would be “neutral” about it.

Those comments garnered criticism from not only other Republican candidates but also from the leading Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, who said Trump had “missed the mark”.

Trump has since clarified on several occasions that he would be supportive of Israel, the last time coming last week when he blasted the Obama White House for alienating America’s strongest ally in the Middle East.

"Your friends need to know that you will stick by the agreements that you have with them. You've made that agreement; you have to stand by it. And the world will be a better place," he said.

“Israel our great friend, and the one true democracy in the Middle East, has been snubbed and criticized by an administration that lacks moral clarity.”