US President Donald Trump told Fox News Sunday that he is disappointed that Israel cannot “move” Hezbollah.
The US President then reiterated statements he made days ago, expressing increasing frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
“They (Israelis) can’t do anything without knocking buildings down,” he said.
Trump suggested that Syria’s leadership could be more effective in dealing with the Iran-backed group.
“I am close to giving this to Syria because he (President Ahmed Al-Sharaa) would do a more precise job,” he said in terms of dealing with Hezbollah.
Later, Trump lashed out at Hezbollah and its sponsor, Iran, in a social media post.
“Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble,” he wrote in a Truth Social post. “If they don’t, we’ll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!”
Trump's repeated remarks in recent days that he had asked Sharaa to have Syria intervene against Hezbollah have been met with rejection in Damascus, concern in Beirut, and little serious concern in Tel Aviv.
Syria, which dominated Lebanon after sending its forces there in 1976, appears to have no intention of repeating that experience today.
“We view our role through supporting the Lebanese state's exercise of its authority,” Ahmed Zeidan, media adviser to the Syrian president, recently told Asharq Al-Awsat in an exclusive statement.
Israel, meanwhile, views Trump's proposal as unserious and as a pointed jab at Netanyahu's government, which has been unable to settle the war against Hezbollah without inflicting widespread destruction on Lebanon.
Although Tel Aviv does not appear concerned about an imminent Syrian military intervention in Lebanon, it believes that any such move would also mean an expansion of Turkish influence.
According to Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli, Syria and Türkiye “pose a far greater concern than Iran.”
By contrast, Beirut moved quickly to reject any Syrian or foreign involvement in the Hezbollah situation, stressing that dealing with the issue remains exclusively the responsibility of the Lebanese state and its institutions.
