By Rami Ayyub
JERUSALEM, May 25 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told confidants in private conversations that Israel has little ability to influence Donald Trump's decision-making on Iran as the U.S. president negotiates a deal in the nearly three-month-old war, two sources said.
Netanyahu's comments, described to Reuters by two Israeli officials with knowledge of the conversations, come as Israel has largely been left out of talks to reach an initial deal to halt a war that began with joint U.S.-Israeli bombardment.
Both the U.S. and Iran have played down hopes for an imminent breakthrough in talks, and they remain at odds over Iran's nuclear ambitions, Tehran's demands for the lifting of sanctions and Israel's war in Lebanon with Hezbollah militants.
Netanyahu is demanding the right to continue operations against perceived threats on all fronts, including Lebanon, a caveat that could derail a deal if Iran insists on a complete halt to Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon.
