Donald Trump said Benjamin Netanyahu has to be “more responsible” in Lebanon, using syria as the backdrop for a sharper public warning to Israel’s prime minister. Trump also said he is “not happy” with Israel’s invasion and handling of Hezbollah.
The remarks land as the United States and Iran move toward formalising an interim accord on Friday, and they put a public edge on a relationship that had largely worked for Trump during his first term. They also tie Israel’s strikes in southern Lebanon and Beirut to the broader diplomacy now surrounding the Iran deal.
Trump, Netanyahu and Lebanon
Trump’s criticism focused on Israel’s actions in Lebanon, where he said Netanyahu has to be “more responsible.” Trump added that he is “not happy” with Israel’s invasion and handling of Hezbollah, language that shows a sharper tone than the alignment that defined much of his first term with Israel.
During that first term, Trump moved the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and recognised Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. He also did not make a big fuss about the growing illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, a record that makes his rebuke now stand out for its public timing rather than its policy depth.
Southern Lebanon and Beirut
The tension in the current dispute sits in the timeline Trump described: while he was making a deal with Iran, Netanyahu appeared to undercut him and allowed Israeli forces to strike targets in southern Lebanon and Beirut. Those strikes, according to the source facts, risked the U.S.-Iran deal and helped turn Lebanon into part of the pressure surrounding the wider agreement.
Mark Pfeifle, a Republican strategist and ex-White House national security adviser, said Israel “very much wants the pressure to continue on Iran,” while Trump wants “the pressure to come up with a deal, and that’s where the challenge is right now.” Pfeifle also said “America’s patience [with Israel] … is growing shorter,” which captures the immediate political friction without changing the basic diplomatic arithmetic.
Pope Leo and Friday
Pope Leo praised the interim deal between the United States and Iran, saying “thanks be to God” and expressing hope that “it truly is a solution to the war, that the war really is over, and that we can move forward.” Speaking to journalists outside his residence in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, he said: “There will still be several points to settle, but it is always better to do so through dialogue, through negotiations, and not by returning to war.”
Leo said the two powers are set to formalise their accord on Friday, making that the next fixed point in the diplomacy now unfolding around Lebanon, Israel and Iran. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz added that “the agreed-upon peace must now hold” and called the U.S.-Iran agreement “an opportunity for the stability of the region and for the global economy,” while saying Germany has already sent mine-clearing boats to the region ahead of an anticipated full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
