Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday issued fresh threats to the Iranian regime, even as US President Donald Trump hinted at the ongoing war ending soon. While the Republican gave a timeline of two to three weeks for the war to end, Netanyahu categorically said: “The campaign is not over. We will continue to crush the terror regime.”
His remarks add to the ambiguity on the future of the conflict, especially at time when Iran has also expressed “necessary will” to bring the conflict to an end.
The US and Israel together launched surprise strikes on Iran last month, triggering a big retaliation from Iran and tensions have since persisted in several Gulf countries, including Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Trump and Netanyahu not on the same page?
Donald Trump on Wednesday said that the war with Iran could be over in about three weeks and left it to other countries to secure the vital Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway that has been seeing massive disruptions since the conflict began.
Trump, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, said the United States would be leaving Iran “very soon,” perhaps within “two weeks, maybe three.” “But we’re finishing the job,” he insisted.
“We want to knock out every single thing they have,” Trump said, before adding that “it’s possible that we’ll make a deal before that.”
However, his friend and ally Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks do not align with what he said. “We will continue to crush the terror regime,” he said insisting that its operation against Iran would go on, adding that Israel had “changed the face of the Middle East”.
Israel also signalled intentions to continue its offensive in Lebanon. Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel would occupy a swathe of southern Lebanon even after the end of the war, and that “all the houses in the villages adjacent to the border in Lebanon will be demolished”.
Iran’s will to end war
Netanyahu’s fresh warning to Iran comes even as not just Donald Trump, but even Iran has expressed willingness to end the war, provided Israel and the US didn’t flare it up again.
“We possess the necessary will to end this conflict, provided that essential conditions are met — especially the guarantees required to prevent repetition of the aggression,” Pezeshkian said in a phone conversation with the president of the European Council, according to AFP.
In response to a 15-point US plan for ending the war, Iran issued a five-point counterproposal seeking a mechanism that guarantees that the US and Israel won’t return to war.
