A new US report reveals that Senator Lindsey Graham planned to fly to Florida in early March to urge President Trump to join Israeli strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon, but Prime Minister Netanyahu vetoed the plan in a phone call, saying that involving the US while the war against Iran is ongoing would be too far-reaching and premature.
A new US report adds significant detail to the story of Senator Lindsey Graham's aborted plan to lobby President Trump for joint US-Israeli strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon. According to the report, which cites unpublished documentation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Graham in a phone call that involving the US in military action in Lebanon while the war against Iran was still ongoing would be 'excessive and premature.' Graham had planned to fly to Florida in early March to urge Trump to join the strikes, but called off the trip after the conversation with Netanyahu.
As The Zioneer reported earlier today, a documentary obtained by the Wall Street Journal and reported by N12 first revealed the plan. The new report provides the first details of Netanyahu's reasoning, indicating that the prime minister was wary of expanding the conflict to include direct US involvement at a time when Israel was already engaged in a major campaign against Iran.
The disclosure comes amid a broader debate over US policy on Hezbollah. President Trump has recently suggested that Syria should handle the group, while Senator Graham has advocated for a more aggressive US posture. Netanyahu's reported veto suggests that, at least in early March, Israel preferred to manage the Lebanon front independently without US combat involvement.
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