Trump Yelled at Netanyahu for Derailing Iran Talks

By Staff, Agencies 

US President Donald Trump has lashed out at “Israeli” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over “Israel’s” escalation in Lebanon, Axios reported on Monday, citing two American officials and a third source briefed on the call.

Trump accused Netanyahu of endangering US negotiations with Iran and demanded that “Israel” halt a planned strike on Beirut, in what Axios described as one of the worst calls between the two leaders since Trump returned to office.

“You’re f**ing crazy. You’d be in prison if it weren’t for me. I’m saving your ass. Everybody hates you now. Everybody hates Israel because of this,” one official summarized Trump’s remarks to Netanyahu. A second source briefed on the call said Trump was “pissed” and yelled at Netanyahu: “What the f** are you doing?”

The US president further raised concerns that Netanyahu had escalated in a disproportionate way in recent days, with mounting civilian casualties and whole buildings razed to target individual Hezbollah commanders.

Tehran has threatened to abandon talks with the US, since a memorandum being negotiated with Washington explicitly calls for an end to the hostilities in Lebanon. Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said he had spoken with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and warned that Tehran’s response could go beyond halting negotiations.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that he “had a conversation with Bibi Netanyahu today, asking him not to go into a major raid of Beirut, Lebanon,” adding that Netanyahu “turned his troops around.” Trump also claimed that representatives of Hezbollah’s leadership had agreed to stop firing at “Israel”.