Politics is fast. We're faster. Sign up to the DC Insider newsletter for a front-row seat to Washington... and unlock 3 FREE months of DailyMail+ HERE See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy CHASE HOPE, POLITICAL REPORTER FOR THE DAILY MAIL Published: 22:26 BST, 8 June 2026 | Updated: 23:31 BST, 8 June 2026
Donald Trump has issued a stark warning to Benjamin Netanyahu after renewed strikes between Israel and Iran threatened to reignite conflict in the Middle East.'Bibi, you better be careful, or you will be on your own very soon,' the President told the Israeli Prime Minister on Monday, according Axios.Netanyahu had planned to launch the most intense bombardment on Iran since April but called off the military action after Trump's call, Israeli officials told the outlet.The strikes were planned after Iran launched a wave of missiles at Israel over the weekend in response to Jerusalem's shelling of Tehran-backed militants Hezbollah in Lebanon. Trump earlier Monday publicly issued a fierce ultimatum to both sides, warning on Truth Social that they must 'immediately stop shooting.'Israel and Iran soon responded that they were resuming the fragile peace, with the caveat that they were prepared to resume attacks if provoked.Trump's warning to Netanyahu comes as their relationship has been pushed to the brink amid the ongoing peace negotiations with Iran.The President branded the Israeli PM 'f***ing crazy' in a phone call just days ago as he threatened to launch strikes on Lebanon's capital Beirut. Donald Trump poses for a photo with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before he boards Air Force One at Ben Gurion International Airport, October 13 A projectile streaks through the sky over central Israel during an Iranian missile attack, Sunday The remains of an Iranian ballistic missile that landed on an agricultural field near the town of Najha, in the Damascus countryside, Syria, June 8It appears that Trump's warning may have fallen on deaf ears Sunday morning as Israel did indeed strike Beirut.The strike on a residential building killed two people and wounded 20, Lebanon's health ministry said.Tehran had vowed to retaliate against Israel if they attacked targets in Lebanon, and the regime followed through by launching missiles at Israel.Trump asked Netanyahu not to retaliate in a phone call on Sunday evening, according to Axios.Netanyahu apparently disregarded Trump's directive.'The Israeli Air Force struck military targets belonging to the Iranian terror regime in western and central Iran,' the IDF said in a statement on Sunday.One of the targets was an Iranian petrochemical facility in Mahshahr, in the south-west of the country.The IDF and Iranian state media have both confirmed the attack, with Iranian outlets saying the complex near the northern coast of the Persian Gulf had been partially damaged. Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment on the village of Jibshit in southern Lebanon on May 23Israel and Iran then traded strikes before the two countries complied with Trump's directive, temporarily restoring a fragile peace in the region.The fighting threatens efforts to end the Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit point for oil, gas and related products like fertilizer.The US, Iran, and Israel have been observing a ceasefire of sorts since April while negotiations over Iran's nuclear program and the Strait are underway.Several times, the administration has indicated that a long-term deal with Iran is imminent, but the situation has yet to materially change.Trump is adamant that Iran must not have a nuclear weapon for any deal to be struck, but he is facing intense political pressure to end the conflict as oil prices have skyrocketed.The President is facing midterm elections in November as the national average gas price has surged to $4.20 per gallon, up from $2.98 before the war began.
