Although Israel and Iran have halted their attacks on each other through the mediation of US President Donald Trump, deliberations are reportedly deepening within the White House over how to rein in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. With a major event like the World Cup being held on American soil, Trump appears to want to either sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Iran before the World Cup begins, or at the very least avoid an escalation of tensions with Iran during the tournament. Israel, however, has different ideas.
On Monday, Trump urged on Truth Social that "Israel and Iran must immediately stop firing." Iran and Israel subsequently halted their attacks on each other, but each warned that they would respond forcefully if the other resumed attacks. This brought a temporary halt to the two-day clash on the 7th and 8th, the first between the two sides since the ceasefire in April.
The US, which is set to host the North American World Cup on its soil starting the 11th, appears eager to pursue a war-ending MOU with Iran before then. In a Fox News interview on the 7th, Trump said there was "a possibility of reaching an agreement with Iran on the 8th, 9th, or 10th." He also wants to avoid an armed clash with Iran at least during the World Cup period.
Earlier, when the US was weighing the timing of its attack on Iran, reports emerged that Trump was considering a date after the closing ceremony of the Milan Winter Olympics in Italy, suggesting that Trump has been reluctant to let major global events coincide with war. In fact, the Milan Winter Olympics closed on Feb. 22, and the US attack on Iran began on the 28th of the same month.
But Israel's excessively hawkish disposition is holding back Trump. Dasha Burns, Politico's White House bureau chief for the US online outlet, conveyed the mood on a podcast on the 8th, saying, "The challenge of how to control Israel is becoming a major burden on the White House."
Indeed, though Trump and Netanyahu had boasted of a "bromance," they have recently been seen clashing in public. Axios reported that when Iran declared a halt to negotiations over Israel's attack on Lebanon, Trump called Netanyahu and angrily told him, "You're crazy."
These differences are closely tied to the political circumstances each side faces. For Trump, who is facing the midterm elections in November, quickly reopening the Strait of Hormuz to stabilize oil prices is an urgent priority. The Washington Post, by contrast, reported on the 8th that "Israelis are urging Netanyahu to resist the US and keep fighting in Lebanon." According to a poll conducted by the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) late last month, about 60% of Israelis, and a majority of supporters of the current government, said Israel should strengthen its response to Hezbollah, the pro-Iran armed group in Lebanon.
Ofer Guterman, a senior researcher at the INSS, told The Wall Street Journal, "Iran is relatively comfortable because it sees that the US and Israel are not taking the same position on the Lebanon issue." He added, "Israel wants to continue using force in Lebanon and Iran for its own interests, but the Trump administration is taking a different stance."
