Has Trump's patience with Netanyahu run out?

Heated exchange

Trump berated Netanyahu in what was described as a "crazy" phone call after the Israeli leader threatened to attack Beirut earlier this week. The heated exchange took place after Iranian state TV warned that any Israeli attack on Beirut would end the brittle ceasefire agreed between ‌Iran and the US in the Gulf. According to Axios, Trump lashed out at Netanyahu when Israeli officials threatened to attack Beirut and warned that such a move would only increase Israel's international isolation. Trump also reminded Netanyahu of the support he had provided the Israeli leader in his legal battle to avoid jail over corruption charges.

At one point, Trump called Netanyahu "crazy", claiming,  "You'd be in prison if it weren't for me. I'm saving your a**. Everybody hates you now. Everybody hates Israel because of this." Netanyahu later admitted to having "tactical disagreements" with Netanyahu, but insisted that the two leaders "agree on the main things", including preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. 

While the Trump administration acknowledges that Hezbollah has continued with its attacks against Israel, there is a growing sense at the White House that Israel's response has been disproportionate, especially considering the high number of Lebanese civilians who have been killed in recent months. There is also concern about Israel's decision to expand its ground offensive in southern Lebanon, where it has seized control of large swathes of Lebanese territory.

Trump's intervention certainly appears to have the desired effect—for the time being, at least —with Israel indicating that it no longer has plans to strike Beirut, and the US helping to broker a fresh ceasefire deal between Israel and the Lebanese government.

The shouting match between Trump and Netanyahu is the latest in a series of rows between the two men dating back to the Gaza conflict, when Trump famously forced the Israeli premier to publicly apologise to the Qataris after Israel bombed a gathering of Hamas negotiators in Doha.

More recently, Trump tried to put Netanyahu in his place over concerns that Israel might hinder negotiations to finalise a deal with Tehran, insisting that Netanyahu will "do whatever he wants him to do".

Renewed diplomacy

In a renewed effort to end the fighting in Lebanon, the US has helped the Lebanese government to agree to a new ceasefire with Israel, with the aim of creating a number of "pilot" security zones inside Lebanon in which Hezbollah operatives would be banned, according to details of the arrangement announced by the US State Department. 

The plan would require Hezbollah to withdraw all of its forces north of the Litani River and to establish "pilot zones," in which parcels of territory would be handed over from the Israeli army directly to the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF).

Lebanese and Israeli representatives based in Washington are expected to resume negotiations on the political and security tracks in the week of 22 June in an effort to reach a comprehensive agreement. But the actual outcome might not be determined through negotiations, but rather on the battlefield. For its part, Hezbollah has continued to attack targets in northern Israel despite the ferocity of Israel's military offensive in Lebanon.

So far, Hezbollah has shown little inclination to accept the latest ceasefire deal for Lebanon. But that could change if the Trump administration succeeds in its broader quest to secure a peace agreement with Tehran, one that includes implementing a proper ceasefire in Lebanon.