US President Donald Trump on Sunday expressed confidence that the latest exchange of strikes between Israel and Iran would not derail his administration's ongoing peace talks with Tehran.
Trump also said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would have "no choice" but to accept any agreement negotiated by the United States with Iran.
"He won't have any choice. I call the shots. I call all the shots. He [Netanyahu] doesn't call the shots," Trump told the Financial Times in a telephone interview.
Trump's remarks came after Israel launched retaliatory strikes on Iranian military targets despite the US president's appeal for restraint.
According to an Axios report, Trump spoke with Netanyahu shortly after Iran fired a salvo of missiles at Israel and urged him not to retaliate, warning that doing so could jeopardise ongoing diplomatic efforts.
"I am going to call Bibi right now and tell him not to retaliate. Each of them had their fun. Israel had its strike, and Iran had its strike. We don't need another one," Trump was quoted as saying by the US media outlet.
Axios noted that Trump's request was highly unusual, as any Israeli military operation against Iran would be significantly more difficult and risky without US support.
Trump further said that Washington was close to finalising a deal with Tehran and that he did not want fresh hostilities to derail the negotiations.
"The Iranian strikes didn't hurt anybody. Hopefully Israel is not going to retaliate. If Bibi strikes them back, it's just gonna keep going like the last 47 years — or the last 3,000 years," he said.
The latest flare-up followed an Israeli strike on Beirut's southern suburbs on Sunday, carried out despite Washington's earlier calls for restraint. Tehran had warned that any such action would invite retaliation.
Later in the day, Iran launched a barrage of missiles at Israel, marking its first direct attack since the April 8 ceasefire between the two countries. Israel subsequently responded with strikes on what it described as Iranian military installations, raising concerns that the fragile truce could unravel and further destabilise the region.
