‘Handle it Alone’ If You Strike Iran Again, Trump Warns Netanyahu

U.S. President Donald Trump has warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that if Israel engages in another conflict with Iran, it will have to handle the situation alone.

The warning on Monday came just as both Israel and Iran signaled an end to several days of tit-for-tat military strikes.

This latest escalation marked the first time Iran and Israel traded direct strikes since a ceasefire took effect in April.

Trump, who has reportedly grown increasingly frustrated with Netanyahu, took to his ‘Truth Social’ platform to demand that both sides stop firing. He stated that the "ultimate talks" for peace would move forward, provided that ignorance or stupidity did not get in the way.

According to media reports, the U.S. President also placed a direct phone call to Netanyahu urging him to halt the attacks.

In an interview with Axios, Trump revealed that he explicitly warned Netanyahu about the consequences of continuing the hostilities.

"I said, 'Bibi, you better be careful, or very soon you’re going to be on your own,'" Trump said.

The brief flare-up was triggered by a deadly Israeli bombardment of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on Sunday.

Iran—which has long maintained that any peace agreement with the U.S. depends partly on a ceasefire in Lebanon—responded by launching a barrage of missiles into northern Israel.

Reports indicate that Trump called Netanyahu on Sunday evening to urge him against retaliation, but Israel went ahead with a counter-strike on Iran early Monday morning, sending regional tensions soaring once again.

Israeli forces targeted Iranian air defense systems and a petrochemical plant. In response, Iran launched retaliatory strikes on a similar facility in Haifa and targeted two Israeli airbases.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei held Washington accountable for the escalation.

"The United States is directly responsible for this. They are a party to the ceasefire negotiations," Baghaei said. "Therefore, any action that violates the ceasefire—whether it is seizing ships in the Strait of Hormuz, Israel targeting southern Lebanon, or any other incident—means the U.S. will be held directly responsible for escalating tensions in this region."
Source: Al Jazeera