United States President Donald Trump has criticised Israel for launching an attack on Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, on the day he has said a deal to end the US-Israel war with Iran could be signed.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said that the Israeli attack on Beirut “should not have happened, particularly on a special day when we are so close to a Peace Deal with Iran.”
“We are very close to a Deal that will bring peace to the region, including to Lebanon, and all sides should stand down. There should be no more attacks by Israel anywhere in Lebanon, but there should also be no more attacks by any other party, including Hezbollah, against Israel. This could be the beginning of a long and beautiful peace — Let’s not blow it!”
Donald Trump
According to authorities, at least three people have been killed in the Israeli strikes on the Dahiyeh area of Beirut. Lebanon’s civil defence agency said that at least seven others were wounded in the Dahiyeh area of the Lebanese capital.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said the military launched the strikes in response to Hezbollah firing projectiles towards northern Israel. In his post on Truth Social, Trump questioned the justification.
“Israel has the right to defend itself against threats, but the attack it was responding to was very small and meaningless, nobody was hurt, injured, or killed, and should not disrupt this important process.”
Donald Trump
The statement came shortly after Iran’s top negotiator and parliament Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said that Israel’s attacks had again drawn US trust into question.
In a post on X, Ghalibaf said the US “either lacks the will to fulfil its commitments or the ability to do so.” “If you lack the will and ability to fulfil your commitments, speaking of continuing the path is not possible,” he said.
Yesterday, Trump said that a deal with Iran was “scheduled” to be signed today, with top mediator Pakistan indicating the signing would be digital.
However, Iranian officials have offered a slightly different timeline, with Esmaeil Baghaei, a spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, saying yesterday that the signing could take days. Still, both sides have broadly indicated that a signing of a memorandum of understanding to end fighting on all fronts, including in Lebanon, was closer than ever.
While no official terms of that initial agreement have been released, both sides have indicated that the Strait of Hormuz would be open, the US naval blockade lifted, and fighting would be immediately halted.
In an interview today, Trump maintained that the signing was still on track, but would be delayed “by a few hours” due to the Israeli strikes.
Trump also voiced further frustration with Netanyahu, who critics have charged with repeatedly seeking to derail diplomacy.
“It is so bad, I couldn’t believe it. An hour before we are supposed to sign the deal. I was so pissed off. I let him know. He has no [expletive] judgement. I let him know that.”
Donald Trump
Iran Threatens Response To Israel’s Attack
Meanwhile, Ebrahim Azizi, Head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee, threatened that a “strong response is coming.” “Today’s crime by the Zionist regime in Dahiyeh, Beirut, once again proved the US is weak without credibility, as it is not even capable of controlling this illegitimate regime,” Azizi said.
Sardar Asadi, an official at the Iranian military’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, was also reported as saying that the Israeli attacks “will not go unanswered.”
During the negotiations, Iran has made clear that attacks on southern Beirut were a red line. When Israel last struck the Beirut suburbs a week ago, Iran responded by firing missiles at Israel, and Trump demanded restraint from Netanyahu in an angry phone call, according to media reports.
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