Iranian Speaker Says Trump Forced Netanyahu to Halt Dahieh Strikes

Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, said in an overnight interview with Iranian television that Tehran forced Washington to accept its terms through threats and an ultimatum. He claimed Iran told the United States to either meet its demands or face retaliation, and said Donald Trump was compelled to order Benjamin Netanyahu to stop attacks in Lebanon’s Dahieh district.

Ghalibaf said Lebanon is part of Iran’s “resistance front,” so any ceasefire had to cover all fronts, especially Lebanon. He said Tehran demanded both an end to fighting on all fronts and the lifting of sanctions. According to him, when Israel struck Dahieh, Iran threatened the United States and said, “Trump was forced to publish a tweet and tell Netanyahu that he must stop the fire and not attack Dahieh.”

He added that when Dahieh was hit again, Iran launched Operation Naser to show its resolve. He said that during talks with mediators on Sunday, “an event in Dahieh” occurred, and he immediately posted that Iran would certainly respond. “After that, the atmosphere of the negotiations changed completely,” he said.

Ghalibaf said Iran told the other side, “Do not respond,” but also warned that if it did, Iran would expand its response. He described this as “the culture of negotiation as struggle,” said he is “a fighter and not a diplomat,” and called the agreement “a certificate of America’s failure.” He said sanctions relief was supposed to come within 30 days, but Trump announced it would happen that same night, and, he said, it did. Ghalibaf ended with a warning that if the enemy does not understand logic, Iran will use force, adding, “Our finger is on the trigger. If the United States does not fulfill its commitment, Iran will not fulfill its commitment either.”