Netanyahu, Trump reportedly hold call amid escalating tensions with Iran and Hezbollah

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump are currently speaking on the phone amid escalating regional tensions after Netanyahu ordered the IDF to strike Hezbollah targets in Beirut, according to multiple Hebrew media outlets.

The call comes as concern grows among security officials and other Israeli sources that Jerusalem is moving toward backing down from its threat to strike Beirut, according to a Channel 12 report.

The prevailing assessment in Israel is that Iran’s threat of “consequences” earlier today in retaliation for an Israeli escalation in Lebanon has sparked fear in Washington that Tehran could reignite the war against Israel and the US at a politically inconvenient time for Trump, the report says.

Channel 12 adds that Netanyahu’s decision to carry out strikes on Beirut was made following private consultations with the military and Defense Minister Israel Katz, during which Netanyahu described growing American openness to an Israeli escalation, given that Israel had abided by Washington’s request to refrain from doing so until now.

But Israel’s expansion of strikes and military operations in southern Lebanon has not proven successful in deterring Hezbollah to date.

In any case, the IDF is compiling new Hezbollah targets in Beirut, including command centers, weapons stockpiles and military infrastructure, as officials wait to see what Trump’s message to Netanyahu will be, the report adds.