US President Donald Trump warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that continued military action against Iran could leave Israel increasingly
isolated, as Washington seeks to negotiate a longer-term peace deal with Tehran, according to a report by Axios. Speaking to Axios on Monday, Trump said he had urged Netanyahu to exercise restraint following a recent exchange of strikes between Israel and Iran. "I said, 'Bibi, you better be careful, or you will be on your own very soon,'" Trump said. The president also said Israel provided the United States with only limited advance notice before carrying out strikes on Iran on Sunday. "Israel gave us very late notice," Trump told the news outlet. Trump said several countries in the region had contacted him following the escalation and urged him to intervene with the Israeli government. "These countries were very concerned. They love the deal that we have been negotiating," he said, without identifying the countries involved. According to Trump, Iranian officials also communicated through US channels, indicating they would halt attacks if Israel did the same. "They called us and said that they are not doing any more attacks and asked us to tell Israel not to do any more attacks," he said. The comments came after Trump and Netanyahu spoke by telephone on Monday morning. According to reports, Trump urged the Israeli leader to suspend further military action, arguing that Washington and Tehran were close to a breakthrough that could pave the way for renewed negotiations over Iran's nuclear activities. The call followed a sharp escalation in tensions that threatened to undermine a ceasefire that had been in place since April. The latest exchange began on Sunday when Israel carried out strikes near the Lebanese capital, Beirut. The Israeli military said the attacks targeted positions linked to Hezbollah, the Iran-backed armed group. Iran responded by launching waves of ballistic missiles towards Israel. On Monday morning, the Israeli military said it had conducted two rounds of air strikes inside Iran, including attacks on what it described as the country's largest petrochemical complex. The strikes prompted further Iranian missile attacks on central Israel. In a recorded statement released after speaking with Trump, Netanyahu said Israel's "fire is on hold" against Iran. Iran's military also indicated that it was suspending attacks for the time being, according to remarks broadcast on Iranian state television. However, both sides warned that military operations could resume if hostilities continued. In his first public remarks since Iran began launching missiles at Israel, Netanyahu said Tehran had sought to "force a new equation" through its retaliation. "This equation is unbearable, and unacceptable to me," he said. The latest fighting marked the most serious escalation since the ceasefire announced on 8 April. On Monday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had targeted Iranian air defence systems that had been rebuilt during the ceasefire period. Israel later carried out strikes on a major petrochemical facility, which the military said was involved in producing materials used in weapons manufacturing. Meanwhile, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned that it could retaliate by targeting infrastructure in Israel and in Gulf states.
