Israel hits Iran with new strikes despite Trump admonition

TEL AVIV/DUBAI/NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey — Israel said it struck military targets in western and central Iran on Monday, even after U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to refrain from further attacks.

Hours earlier, Trump said new strikes by Israel and Iran would not affect his administration’s peace talks with Tehran, adding that Netanyahu “doesn’t call the shots.”

Trump has pushed Israel to scale back its military operations in Lebanon to allow space for a potential agreement aimed at ending the broader conflict with Iran. He also reportedly criticized Netanyahu during a phone call last week. However, Israel on Sunday carried out strikes in the Beirut area for the first time since the United States announced a truce proposal for Lebanon last week.

Iran responded by firing a barrage of missiles toward Israeli targets, escalating tensions and putting U.S.–Iran peace negotiations at risk. Despite the escalation, Trump insisted that a potential agreement remains within reach.

“It’s not going to have any impact on the deal,” Trump told the Financial Times. “I call the shots. I call all the shots. He doesn’t call the shots.”

A few hours later, the Israel Defense Forces said they had struck Iranian military targets. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Israel had carried out attacks inside Iran using air-launched ballistic missiles.

The latest hostilities pushed oil prices up more than 3% in early trading on Monday, with Brent crude futures rising back above $96 a barrel.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they targeted the Ramat David air base near Nazareth. The Israeli military said it detected missiles launched from Iran and that its air defense systems intercepted them.

Trump urged Netanyahu to hold off further strikes

Trump, who spent the weekend at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, spoke with Netanyahu for less than half an hour on Sunday, according to an Israeli official. The White House and Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

A U.S. official quoted by Axios said Trump urged Netanyahu during the call to avoid further strikes, arguing that “we are close to doing something good in terms of a deal.”

Since the start of U.S.–Iran talks aimed at halting the wider conflict, Israel has continued operations in Lebanon against Hezbollah. Israeli officials maintain that the Lebanon campaign is separate from negotiations with Iran.

Tehran, however, has said any agreement with the United States would depend on a ceasefire in Lebanon as well. Israel launched an invasion in March targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters, who had been firing rockets and drones across the border in support of Tehran.

Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammed Baqer Qalibaf said U.S. bases and Israeli assets are legitimate targets due to what he described as hostile actions, including violations of agreements related to Lebanon.

Before Sunday, Iran had not attacked Israel since a ceasefire in the broader conflict took effect in April, although Hezbollah has continued limited strikes.

Trump has repeatedly said Washington and Tehran are close to a deal to end the war.

“We’re very close to a deal, or I’m going to blow the hell out of them,” Trump said in a prerecorded interview with NBC News’ Meet the Press, marking 100 days since the conflict escalated.

Trump wants no attacks in Lebanon

Israel has continued its military campaign in Lebanon, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and displaced hundreds of thousands of people. Hezbollah, which was not part of the truce negotiations, has also maintained its attacks and says it will not disarm unless Israel halts its operations and withdraws from Lebanese territory.

Netanyahu said Sunday’s strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, known as Dahiyeh and considered a Hezbollah stronghold, were carried out in response to rocket fire from the group.

The wider conflict has largely remained in a stalemate since the United States and Israel paused direct strikes on Iran in early April. During this period, Tehran has disrupted shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global oil route, while Washington has imposed restrictions on Iranian ports.

Although U.S. and Iranian officials have said they are nearing a preliminary agreement to reopen the strait, both sides have continued exchanging threats and limited strikes, including incidents involving neighboring Arab states that host U.S. forces.

Trump has said any deal must prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons and has faced pressure to secure a tougher agreement than the 2015 nuclear deal negotiated under former President Barack Obama, which he later withdrew from.

Iran has demanded the lifting of sanctions, recognition of its influence over the Strait of Hormuz, and access to billions of dollars in frozen assets.

A source familiar with U.S. planning told Reuters on Saturday that Washington is considering allowing Iranian assets to be used by Gulf states for reconstruction efforts following damage from the conflict.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Sunday that any diversion of Iranian funds would be illegal and warned that Tehran would respond accordingly.

Netanyahu has also faced domestic criticism over the ongoing Lebanon conflict and the prospects of a ceasefire ahead of upcoming national elections. -Reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Peter Graff and Kristina Cooke; Editing by Sergio Non and Sonali Paul/Reuters