Prime Minister Netanyahu told President Trump in a phone call last night that Israel does not consider itself bound by the Lebanon article in the emerging US-Iran memorandum of understanding, according to Israeli official sources. Separately, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said the Trump agreement 'does not obligate us' and stressed Israel is an independent sovereign state not subject to the US.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir stated publicly on Monday morning that Israel is not a party to the emerging US-Iran deal, saying 'Trump's agreement does not obligate us. Israel is not subject to the US, we are an independent and sovereign state.' The statement came hours after Prime Minister Netanyahu's overnight phone call with President Trump, during which — according to multiple Israeli sources confirmed by Israeli and Fox News reporting by Monday morning — Netanyahu said Israel does not consider itself bound by the Lebanon clause in the US-Iran memorandum of understanding, and that the IDF will not withdraw from Lebanon.
The desk's thread on this development began early Sunday, with a single source reporting that Netanyahu had refused to withdraw the IDF from southern Lebanon. By Sunday evening, Israeli sources confirmed to multiple newsrooms that Netanyahu had told Trump explicitly that Israel is not bound by the Lebanon clause, and journalist Anna Barsky reported he rejected withdrawal from five strategic points and the Syrian Hermon. A Russian source cited earlier in Israeli reports had first raised the claim that Netanyahu told Trump Israel was not bound by the deal; by 07:14 Jerusalem, Israeli sources and Fox News had corroborated the account. Ben Gvir's statement Monday morning is the first public Israeli ministerial declaration that Israel is not a party to the agreement.
As The Zioneer reported on Sunday, a senior Israeli cabinet minister had already said Lebanon is Israel's red line even at the cost of a confrontation with the US, and an Israeli source told Iran International on Saturday that Israel is not obligated to sign any US-Iran deal and retains the right to self-defense. A senior US official said Saturday that Washington will not demand an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon until at least 60 days, and Trump stated in a prior interview that he does not require Lebanon to be part of the Iran agreement.
The specific mechanism for implementing the Lebanon clause in the US-Iran memorandum remains unclear — particularly how the US would reconcile its reported 60-day timeline with Israel's stated refusal to withdraw. The status of Iranian frozen assets and the nuclear discussion timeline, which Iran's deputy foreign minister said will only begin after those assets are released, also remain open variables.
7 developments
- StrongBen Gvir: Israel must not accept US-Iran ceasefire
- StrongIsraeli source: Israel not obligated to sign US-Iran deal, retains self-defense right
- StrongRubio: US on track to sign Iran deal, Israeli strikes won't derail process
- DevelopingMK Boaz Bismuth: Israel not obligated by US-Iran deal, committed to war goals
Source and signal
- Internal intake