Tensions between Jerusalem and Washington are deepening over the emerging US deal with Iran, with Israeli officials saying the dispute reflects a broad security consensus rather than coalition politics. The article says Washington believes Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir are driving Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard line, but Israeli officials insist the agreement is viewed across the top of the state and security establishment as a security disaster for Israel.
US frustration became public in remarks by Vice President JD Vance, who said he did not think Netanyahu personally criticized the deal, but pointed to ministers in his government who attacked it. Vance said, “I am bothered that there are people in Netanyahu’s cabinet who attacked the deal and attacked Trump,” adding, “The message to them is that President Trump is the only one who is empathetic toward them right now in the world.” According to the report, similar criticism was also conveyed to Netanyahu in recent private conversations.
Inside Jerusalem, officials describe a rare consensus from the chief of staff through cabinet ministers and Netanyahu himself that the US-Iran agreement is a “catastrophe.” One senior cabinet member told N12, “Israel needs to be prepared to act alone. It will not happen tomorrow morning, but our baseline assumption is that Trump has lost interest, regardless of what the Iranians do or do not do.”
Netanyahu convened the smaller security cabinet for an urgent discussion on Thursday evening. Israeli officials now expect months of heavy diplomatic pressure, possibly until after the US midterm elections in November, aimed at limiting the IDF’s freedom of action. The pressure is expected to extend beyond Lebanon to Gaza and Yemen as well, and in Jerusalem they say the United States is trying to curb Israel’s military initiative across all fronts. In private, Netanyahu has already shifted his language, stressing the need to “maneuver and act wisely diplomatically.”
