Had he been detained, as he certainly should have been, the peoples of Iran, Lebanon, the Gulf – and Israel itself – might have been spared much present-day pain and suffering. The episode provoked a spate of reports about how US and Israeli war aims are diverging. But he is also talking about putting troops on the ground – another potentially huge expansion of the war – and Trump has not ruled it out. He repeatedly consulted the Israeli leader by phone and in person in the weeks before the Iran war. Netanyahu is the Middle East’s foremost proponent of the “forever war” – the phenomenon Trump and his supporters loathe the most.

Source: The Guardian March 20, 2026 18:10 UTC