US President-elect Donald Trump told Time magazine, which once again named him its Person of the Year, on Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu knows he wants to end the war in Gaza, hinted that war with Iran could be on the cards, and refrained from endorsing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, even though his “deal of the century” proposed a tarnished version of a Palestinian state in 2020.

"The Middle East will be solved," Trump said, according to a transcript of the interview. "I think it's more complicated than Russia and Ukraine, but I think it's easier to solve."

Asked about the prospect of war with Iran, Trump paused before replying, "Anything can happen," in a shift from his campaign message, when he vowed he would not start any new wars.

"The Middle East will be solved," Trump said, according to a transcript of the interview. "I think it's more complicated than Russia and Ukraine, but I think it's easier to solve."

The wide-ranging interview appears in an upcoming issue of Time magazine, which named Trump its "Person of the Year" for the second time, the first time after he first won the White House in 2016.

Time magazine said Trump was chosen as Person of the Year "for orchestrating a comeback of historic proportions, leading a once-in-a-generation political realignment, reshaping the American presidency and transforming America's role in the world."

According to Time magazine, Trump informed Netanyahu of his position during phone calls the two had during the US election campaign.

Asked if Netanyahu had given him assurances about ending the Gaza war, Trump declined to answer directly, saying: “I don’t want to kill people on either side… whether it’s the Palestinians or the Israelis and all the different entities that we have in the Middle East.”

When asked by Time magazine if he trusted Netanyahu for a second term, Trump took a second before answering: “I don’t trust anybody.”

Israeli media reported last October that Trump told Netanyahu during a meeting at his Mar-a-Lago resort that he wanted to end the war by the time he took office.

Israel has long been weary of such public calls from world leaders, arguing that they unfairly direct pressure at Israel rather than Hamas. Trump posted on social media earlier this month warning of “all hell to pay” if the hostages in Gaza are not released by his inauguration on January 20. However, the president-elect did not mention Hamas or Israel in that statement.

Speaking to Time magazine, Trump appeared to reiterate his assessment that most of the hostages were no longer alive.

“The other thing that’s going on is the hostages. Where are the hostages? Why haven’t they come back? Well, maybe they’re gone (dead)… I think Hamas might say, the hostages are gone. That’s what they want,” Trump said.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he told Trump that Israeli intelligence estimates indicate that about half of the 100 hostages are still alive.

So far, Netanyahu has rejected US calls to end his brutal war on Gaza in exchange for the release of the hostages, arguing that this would allow Hamas to revive. His coalition also relies on far-right partners who have threatened to topple the government if the prime minister agrees to such a deal.

Israeli media have previously claimed that the Israeli security establishment was more open to a swap, arguing that Israel could return its forces to Gaza if necessary after the withdrawal and warning that there would not be many hostages alive if Israel waited much longer to reach a deal.

In recent days, Israeli officials have appeared more optimistic about the chances of reaching an agreement.

According to what leaked from behind the scenes in the Qatari capital, Doha, the two sides indicated their readiness to compromise on the terms of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, but no agreement was reached on the long-standing stumbling block in the talks - whether the ceasefire would be permanent or temporary.

Mediators are still pushing for a three-stage deal, similar to the one Israel presented and US President Joe Biden publicly endorsed on May 31. Israel is more focused on the first 40-60 day phase of the deal, but the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas fears that Israel will once again resume its brutal war on Gaza after Trump takes office.

According to the magazine, Trump said in response to a question about whether he still supports the “Deal of the Century” that he launched at the White House in January 2020, Trump replied: “I support the peace plan, and it can take different forms.”

“I support whatever solution we can do to achieve peace. There are other ideas than the two-state solution, but I support whatever is necessary to achieve not just peace, [but] lasting peace. It cannot continue where every five years you end up with a tragedy. There are other alternatives,” he said.