US President Donald Trump has criticised Benjamin Netanyahu over the Iran peace talks as Washington pushes to finalise a deal aimed at ending the war with Tehran.
“You don’t have to knock down an apartment house every time you’re looking for somebody because there’s a lot of people in those apartment houses – and they’re not all Hezbollah,” Trump said during his visit to a G7 summit in France on Tuesday.
He said "without me, there would be no Israel" and cursed Netanyahu’s judgment in interviews, even describing him as "crazy."
Netanyahu's tenure spans four US presidents, and he's frustrated all of them, but none has voiced that as openly as Trump.
The tension comes as Trump criticises recent Israeli attacks in Lebanon, which threatened to jeopardise negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
Trump has been pushing for a deal as he faces political blowback at home, where the war is unpopular and has driven up gasoline prices.
G7 dressing-down
An agreement is scheduled to be signed on Friday in Geneva.
Speaking at the annual G7 summit in France, Trump said he told Netanyahu that he's been unhappy with his recent moves.
"Without the US, there would be no Israel. Without me, there would be no Israel because no other President was willing to do what I did," Trump said.
"I have had a great relationship with Bibi. Now Bibi has to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon."
