President Donald Trump has stated that Israel's strike in Beirut earlier today "should not have happened," and that Hezbollah and other parties must refrain from attacks, according to an Israeli media report at 18:40. Separately, the political-security cabinet will convene this evening. US sources told N12 that Washington is exerting heavy pressure on Iran not to retaliate.
President Donald Trump, in remarks attributed by an Israeli media report at 18:40, said Israel should not have carried out the Beirut strike today and called for all sides, including Hezbollah, to avoid further attacks. The report frames the strike as uncoordinated with the US — a position that sharpens a thread we have been tracking since 17:54 (Jerusalem), when Trump first criticized the operation as unwarranted and as risking progress toward a peace agreement with Iran. By 18:33 Jerusalem, we reported that Israel had raised its alert level and was preparing for possible Iranian missile fire, with the US having been notified beforehand through CENTCOM. The current 18:40 report, however, takes a more critical tone — calling the operation uncoordinated — and says Trump intends to call Prime Minister Netanyahu to urge restraint.
The evolution of the US position across the thread is notable: at 17:54 Jerusalem, Trump's criticism was general; by 18:33, we noted that the US had been notified via CENTCOM, implying at least operational awareness; the 18:40 report now asserts that the strike was not coordinated, suggesting either a shift in the US assessment or a clarification of its prior stance. Separately, US sources told N12 that Washington is exerting heavy pressure on Iran not to retaliate, as The Zioneer reported in earlier dispatches. The political-security cabinet is set to convene this evening, amid a broader picture of heightened Israeli readiness and shifting assessments of Iranian intentions — as The Zioneer has tracked since earlier bulletins.
What remains open: whether Trump has directly spoken to Netanyahu since the 18:40 report, the precise sequence of notification versus coordination, and how the US position will translate into diplomatic channels in the hours ahead.
2 developments
- StrongTrump says Israel's Beirut strike was not coordinated with US, plans to call Netanyahu to urge restraint
- StrongTrump asked Iran not to respond to Beirut strike, furious about attack in central Lebanon
- ConfirmedTrump denounces IDF strikes in Beirut, calls for cessation of attacks on Hezbollah
- StrongTrump calls Beirut strike 'insignificant', says deal with Iran close
Source and signal
- Internal intake