(Note: This article contains offensive language in a later section)
JERUSALEM, June 8 – Israel carried out fresh attacks against Iran on Monday, openly ignoring Donald Trump’s public demands for restraint, in what appears to be an effort to secure influence in peace negotiations where the U.S. president has sidelined Israeli participation.
Although Trump had openly urged Israel to cease hostilities, Israeli forces targeted Iranian sites for the first time since an April ceasefire, following Iranian missile attacks on Israel that Tehran described as payback for Israeli operations against Lebanon’s capital.
Both Israel and Iran ended their exchange Monday after Trump instructed them to cease fire, though each nation indicated fighting could potentially resume.
However, by conducting these operations, Israel delivered a clear signal to Washington that any final Iran agreement must consider Israeli concerns, according to Danny Orbach, a military historian at Israel’s Hebrew University.
“Because if it tramples too heavily on Israeli interests, Israel can overturn the table.”
TRUMP EXCLUDES ISRAEL FROM NEGOTIATIONS
Trump, who initiated the conflict alongside Israel in February, has been pursuing a negotiated resolution with Iran while keeping Israel out of those discussions.
The president has openly pressured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to avoid actions that might derail negotiations, including maintaining restraint in Lebanon, which Israel entered in March while pursuing the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement.
Iran maintains it will reject any peace agreement with Washington unless Lebanon also observes a ceasefire.
Netanyahu canceled planned Beirut airstrikes last week following a Trump phone call. Trump later acknowledged calling the Israeli leader “fucking crazy” during their heated conversation, though he maintained their relationship remains positive.
Netanyahu’s domestic opponents criticized him for essentially giving up sovereignty by limiting Israeli military operations to preserve U.S. diplomatic efforts, despite having no negotiating role.
ISRAEL SEEKS TO RETAIN ABILITY TO ATTACK IN LEBANON
Following Israel’s Lebanon operation Sunday and Iran’s retaliatory strikes on Israel, Trump indicated he considered the matter settled.
“Each of them had their fun,” he told the Axios website. “Israel had its strike and Iran had its strike. We don’t need another one,” Trump said.
However, Israel determined that only by targeting Iran directly could it demonstrate that Iran should not gain future authority over Israeli operations in Lebanon.
Israel could not tolerate a situation where Iranian attacks on Israel were viewed as legitimate “tit-for-tat response” to Israeli operations in Lebanon, a senior Israeli defence official told Reuters.
Prior to authorizing Iran strikes, Netanyahu assembled top security and defence officials to evaluate objectives of potential short-term escalation, according to the senior defence official and two other Israeli officials with knowledge of the discussions.
One objective involved establishing that any future U.S.-Iran agreement would preserve Israel’s authority to target Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and maintain troop deployments there, the senior defence official explained.
Netanyahu had discussed this concern during weekend conversations with Trump, the senior defence official noted.
Netanyahu has remained silent publicly since resuming Iran operations early Monday. His office did not immediately respond to comment requests.
ISRAEL CANNOT SUSTAIN LONG IRAN AIR CAMPAIGN ALONE, ANALYSTS SAY
The short-lived renewal of Israel-Iran hostilities and Netanyahu’s defiance of Trump’s instructions represent the latest incident highlighting tensions that have periodically surfaced between the two conservative leaders.
Privately, Netanyahu has admitted difficulty swaying Trump’s Iran policy, telling staff he has “no manoeuvre” to influence the president’s choices.
While Israel possesses capabilities to attack Iran independently, it would still require Washington’s approval and assistance to maintain extended air operations beyond several weeks, military experts indicate.
“There’s no doubt that Israel (cannot) go alone in this war for a long, long time, because (the) ammunition is consumable,” said Yehoshua Kalisky, a senior researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies.
