Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz blamed President Trump on Monday for stopping the Jewish state from eliminating all of Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Explaining to reporters that having a “partnership” with the US “has certain constraints,” Katz said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “stood bravely” against Trump’s demands that Israel Defense Forces leave Lebanon through four phone calls.
”Iran constantly pressured the United States to pressure Israel, in order to stop this,” he said, according to a translated transcript of the briefing obtained by The Post. “At that time, we were attacking all of Lebanon, I remind you.”
“Hezbollah … in a panic pressured Iran to connect the arenas,” he added, referring to the linkage of the Lebanon front to the US-Iran cease-fire.
Netanyahu ultimately agreed not to “take down buildings” in Beirut” — something Katz opposed — but pushed to continue “surgical attacks.”
”I’m sorry for that connection [of the cease-fire extending to Lebanon,] but it was an American interest, that [Trump] really, really wanted to promote the possibility of negotiations with Iran, etc., and he saw this as an obstacle to it.”
That’s when the plan changed to contain IDF troops to southern Lebanon, where Israel and Lebanon agreed last week Israeli forces can remain until Hezbollah is defeated.
