Trump accuses Netanyahu of killing ‘too many people’ in Lebanon

Donald Trump accused Benjamin Netanyahu of killing ‘too many people’ in Lebanon while speaking at the Group of Seven summit on Tuesday. The President expressed his frustration with Israel’s actions during bilateral meetings with the Qatari delegation, including the emir, Sheik Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. ‘Israel is fighting Hezbollah too long, and too many people are being killed,’ Trump said while taking questions from reporters. They should have been able to do the job faster. ‘You don’t have to knock down an apartment house every time you’re looking for somebody. There are a lot of people in those apartment houses, and they’re not all Hezbollah.’ Israel has killed at least 3,783 people and wounded 11,699 others in Lebanon between March 2 and June 14, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. The agency does not distinguish between civilians and military combatants. Trump also aired his anger with Bibi over the Israeli prime minister’s decision to bomb Beirut just two hours before the memorandum of understanding was to be signed by the US and Iran on Sunday. ‘Bibi has to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon,’ Trump said.

‘I’m not happy with the way Israel has handled themselves with Lebanon, and with Hezbollah.’ Trump also noted that he has told Israeli officials that Syria should ‘take care’ of the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah. ‘I suggested to Israel to let Syria take care of Hezbollah,’ the President said. ‘If Israel can’t do the job without killing everyone else, he’ll do the job, Syria will do the job.’ Trump has had a warm relationship with Syrian president Ahmed al-Sharaa since the leader took power in early last year.

The two leaders have met at least three times during Trump’s second term and also had multiple phone calls. The US President described him as a ‘young, attractive guy,’ and a ‘fighter.’ Trump’s high praise comes despite al-Sharaa once being on the FBI’s most wanted list for his connections to Al-Qaeda and terrorism. The President also doubled down on his recent claim that Israel would have been destroyed by Iran. Without the US, there would be no Israel. Without me, there would be no Israel because no other President was willing to do what I did.’

Israel is not a member of the G7, nor was it invited to join the delegation. However, other Gulf partners who are not officially members of the G7, including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, were invited to attend the summit. Trump, Vance, and Iranian officials signed the MOU on Sunday to begin a 60-day negotiation period to hash out specifics on how to end the Iran war, a senior administration official told the Daily Mail on Monday. The senior official did not mention whether Israel had signed onto the agreement, but they did note that under the MOU, Israel will be allowed to respond to Lebanese attacks without violating the agreement.