U.S. Defense Secretary Hegseth cancels visit to Israel - report | 9 May 2025 | U.S. 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.