Trump-Netanyahu rift tests US-Israel alliance amid Iran talks

US President Donald Trump’s handling of Iran talks has opened a visible rift with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to Al Jazeera, raising questions inside Israel about the durability of Washington’s support. The strain matters because Israel relies heavily on US military aid, diplomatic cover and political backing.

Al Jazeera reported that Netanyahu is facing one of the most difficult periods of his political career, with corruption charges still pending and a general election that could remove him from office later this year. The report said the Israeli leader is also under pressure over the war in Lebanon, where Israel has carried out attacks since 2023.

Iran has made an end to Israel’s war in southern Lebanon a central demand in negotiations with Washington over a possible peace deal, according to Al Jazeera. That demand has put Trump and Netanyahu at odds over how to proceed with Tehran.

An alleged leaked call last month, which Al Jazeera said the White House did not deny, showed Trump berating Netanyahu for refusing to stop attacks on Lebanon. In that reported exchange, Trump called Netanyahu “crazy,” accused him of ingratitude and said Netanyahu would be in jail without Trump’s intervention.

Trump also told Axios last week that Netanyahu “knows who the boss is,” a remark Al Jazeera presented as evidence of open tension between the two leaders. Vice President JD Vance said at a June media conference, according to Axios, that Trump was the only world leader still sympathetic to Israel and warned Israeli ministers that much of Israel’s defensive arsenal was built in the United States and paid for by US taxpayers.

Pressure from Trump’s right

Al Jazeera said recent polling shows US public opinion has moved against Israel, including within parts of Trump’s Make America Great Again movement. The report cited criticism from Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and former television host Tucker Carlson, who said in late June that Israel posed the greatest threat to Trump’s administration.

Daniel Byman of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies and Georgetown University told Al Jazeera that Trump has room to pressure Israel despite Republican support for the country. Byman said Trump’s loyal base gives him freedom inside his party, while many Democrats have become more critical of Israel.

US support remains central to Israel’s security and diplomacy. Al Jazeera noted that a 2016 memorandum of understanding gave Israel $38bn in US military assistance over 10 years, the largest such agreement between Washington and another country. The report also said Washington has used its UN veto six times in Israel’s favor during debates over Gaza, where at least 72,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, 2023.

Israeli opposition targets Netanyahu

Israeli opposition figures have used the dispute with Washington to attack Netanyahu’s foreign policy record, according to Al Jazeera. Opposition leader Yair Lapid wrote on X in mid-June that Israel’s foreign relations would be “wiped out” unless the government was replaced quickly.

Gadi Eisenkot, a former Israeli military chief of staff whom Al Jazeera described as a leading challenger to Netanyahu, has also accused the prime minister of damaging ties with the United States. Eisenkot said Netanyahu’s handling of relations helped push Trump toward a separate deal with Iran, further isolating Israel from its closest ally.

Israeli political analyst Nimrod Flaschenberg told Al Jazeera that the United States is the key power behind Israel’s global standing, defense and technology access. Former US diplomat Aaron David Miller said no previous US president or vice president had spoken about Israeli leaders in such diminishing terms, but he added that there is no sign Trump is preparing a full break with Israel.

This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.