U.S. President Donald Trump delivered a rare public rebuke of Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon on Tuesday, saying the approach of bombing entire apartment buildings to hunt down Hezbollah fighters is unnecessary and is resulting in civilian deaths.
Speaking at the G7 summit in France, Trump said Israel has been fighting Hezbollah — the Iran-aligned Lebanese militia — for “too long.” He voiced frustration over Israeli airstrikes in Beirut, which he said had put his recent peace agreement with Iran at risk.
“Too many people have been killed. You don’t have to knock down an apartment house every time you’re looking for somebody, because there are a lot of people in those apartment houses, and they’re not all Hezbollah,” Trump said during the summit.
The remarks signal growing friction between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has long been considered a key political ally. Israeli officials have reportedly been quietly voicing frustration over Trump’s Iran deal, while Trump has grown increasingly impatient with Netanyahu over the Beirut strikes, which he says triggered Iranian attacks at a critical moment in negotiations.
Despite the criticism, Trump described his relationship with Netanyahu as “great,” while also insisting the Israeli leader should be “more responsible” when it comes to Lebanon. He also made a pointed statement about America’s role in Israel’s existence: “Without us, without the United States, there would be no Israel. Without me, there would be no Israel, because no other president was willing to do what I did.”
The two leaders have repeatedly clashed over Israel’s continued military pursuit of Hezbollah in Lebanon. A halt to those operations is reportedly a key demand from Iran. It is uncommon for U.S. presidents to publicly criticize Israel’s military methods.
Shortly after Trump’s remarks, an official White House social media account shared a video clip of those specific comments — though the White House did not explain why those particular remarks were highlighted.
The White House did, however, emphasize that Trump maintains a strong relationship with Netanyahu and described the Israel Defense Forces as “incredible partners.”
“There has been no greater friend to Israel and a fighter for peace than President Trump…Americans and our allies around the world are already safer for the United States and Israel’s bold actions to deny the Iranian regime the ability to develop a nuclear weapon,” a White House official stated.
Analysts note there is no clear sign that Trump’s comments will lead to any concrete policy changes that would compel Israel to alter its military tactics or better protect civilians.
Israel has faced widespread international criticism, particularly over its military campaign in Gaza, which has resulted in 73,000 deaths — the majority of them civilians — according to the Gaza health ministry. Israel maintains that it does not intentionally target non-combatants and accuses militant groups like Hamas and Hezbollah of using civilians as human shields.
A spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in Washington declined to comment on the story.
