Netanyahu addresses the public after US-Iran agreement is signed

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a special statement to the public on Monday evening, shortly after the signing of an agreement between the United States and Iran. It was his first press conference since March. The speech came soon after President Donald Trump said the deal with Iran had already been signed and that the “situation is partly open.”

Trump said the United States was getting along well with Iran, but sanctions would remain in place until Tehran did what it was supposed to do. He added that if the deal is implemented, it could bring positive changes to the Middle East, including lower oil prices and a rising stock market. “We are approaching the price of a barrel of oil, as it was before the war,” he said.

Earlier in the evening, former prime minister Naftali Bennett issued his own statement and attacked Netanyahu. Bennett said that in the “1,000-day war” with Israel, IDF soldiers and all security branches had shown extraordinary courage and “breathtaking ingenuity,” but he argued that the leadership failed. He said Netanyahu’s government term began with a civil conflict, continued through the October 7 massacre, and is ending in a “historic failure” against Iran.