After U.S. media, Israeli outlets have now revealed that U.S. President Donald Trump sternly warned the “devilish” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying: “You must stay under control now, or I will target you myself.”
That exchange happened during a recent telephone conversation between the two leaders about ending the Gaza war and a plan for releasing Israeli captives.
According to Barak Ravid, the political reporter for Israeli Channel 12, Trump called Netanyahu on Friday when he was told by his team that Hamas had given a positive response to the U.S. plan — a response that could provide a basis for continuing the talks. Netanyahu, however, replied in his usual disappointing tone that “Hamas’s response is meaningless and there’s no reason to celebrate it.”
Ravid says Trump became furious at Netanyahu’s attitude and shouted:
“Why are you always negative? You are part of my plan, not against it.”
Trump made it clear that, at this moment, it was not Israel running things on the ground but an American plan — and that Washington now had direct control over the whole political and military strategy.
Israeli analyst Attila Somfalvi says Trump didn’t limit himself to verbal threats; he also sent a message to Netanyahu and his close advisers:
“Every two hours you will receive something from me — a statement, a map, a message or a video — so that you all stay within your limits.”
Somfalvi describes this as psychological pressure intended to keep Israeli leadership from straying outside American lines.
Former Israeli defense adviser Barak Seri says Netanyahu’s recent statements of optimistic confidence are actually an attempt to hide the American pressure. Netanyahu knows the ongoing process is now entirely in Trump’s hands, but he presents it to the public as an Israeli achievement.
Tel Aviv University researcher Mikhail Milstein says Washington has now thrown its weight behind Qatar’s position — a major change. He suggests that Israeli media attacks on Qatar have actually made Doha more effective in the negotiation process.
Meanwhile, Yedioth Ahronoth’s military commentator Ron Ben-Yishai wrote that Israeli security agencies sense a real possibility of progress, but Hamas is keeping its “prisoners’ leverage” until the last moment to guard against any trick.
RAND analyst Shira Aferon wryly commented that “Hamas will not abandon its core principles — not until the Messiah returns and a Palestinian state is established!”
And according to Ofer Shiloh, a researcher at the Israeli Institute for National Security, everything now hinges on one question: “Will Trump stick to his toughness?” If he does, Netanyahu will have no room left for defiance.
So, analysts say the decision about the Gaza war is no longer being made in Tel Aviv but in Washington — and Trump’s line “or I’ll bomb you myself” is actually a symbol of a new political balance in which the United States is, for the first time openly, making Israel follow its orders.
Great