Netanyahu denies misleading Trump, US on Iran war

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has debunked allegations that he intentionally misled President Donald Trump to get the United States involved in the Iran war.

“Nobody tells President Trump what to do,” he stated in a new interview with ABC News, recalling their conversation in Mar-a-Lago shortly after Trump was re-elected in 2024.

“The first thing he said to me: I have to make sure that Iran doesn’t have nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu disclosed. “We both understood that we had to take action.”

Netanyahu also refuted the report that he assured Trump a regime change was possible in Iran, and that its missile program could be destroyed in a few weeks, without Hormuz Strait closure.

“That wasn’t my early assessment. And that’s an incorrect statement of what I said,” the prime minister clarified. “I think this regime will eventually fall.”

Netanyahu blamed Americans’ waning support for Israel—which a recent poll puts at 32%—on “the proliferation of social media” and the “manipulation” of countries with bot farms.

The leader argued that the internet community wrongly presented the war in Gaza and influenced “the lies that were put forward,” declaring those who hate Israel hate America.

He insists Hamas had a “genocidal intent” and wanted civilians killed “so they can go on TV or go to the corrupt International Criminal Court and accuse us of war crimes.”

Asked why independent journalists are not allowed in Gaza if he feels the situation is being misrepresented, Netanyahu emphasized that the area is risky and volatile, being a “war zone.”

“But you can see what’s happening. We don’t hide it,” the premier said. “Anybody can use a Google Map to find out exactly what is happening.”