Benjamin Netanyahu gambled that partnering with Donald Trump in a joint war effort would help topple Iran’s clerical rulers and boost his own status as the architect of a U.S.-Israeli alliance to reshape the Middle East ahead of domestic elections.
Instead, Israel's longest-serving prime minister is on a collision course with Trump as the president seeks to extricate the U.S. from the war. Neither man has met his goals and Israeli military operations remain tied down in Lebanon.
For now, Israeli officials are cautious in public, fearing they might anger their most important ally.
In private, however, frustration is clear. The preliminary agreement is "terrible for Israel," a senior Israeli official said 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."
The United States says that during the 60-day cease-fire, it will negotiate terms to address U.S. and Israeli concerns, particularly regarding Iran's nuclear program.
