Benjamin Netanyahu bet that his joint war alongside US President Donald Trump would topple Iran’s clerical rulers and bolster himself ahead of elections at home, as the architect of a US-Israeli alliance that would reshape the Middle East.
Instead, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister is on a collision course with Trump as the US president seeks to extricate himself from the war, with both men’s goals unmet and Israeli military operations tied down in Lebanon.
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For now, Israeli officials have been cautious in public for fear of angering their most important ally, known for being prickly towards critics.
But in private conversations, the frustration is clear. The preliminary agreement is “terrible for Israel,” said one senior Israeli official, giving a frank assessment on condition of anonymity. “And there is no one in the Israeli leadership who views it otherwise, from the prime minister to the chief of staff.”
