There is a particular kind of danger in Middle East diplomacy that no memorandum of understanding can fully insure against: a leader with nothing left to lose and an army still under his command. That is Benjamin Netanyahu today. Washington and Tehran have signed a framework meant to end the active hostilities that have consumed the region since March. Israel was not a party to it. And Netanyahu has made it unambiguous that he does not consider himself bound by its terms.

Within days of the framework taking effect, Netanyahu stood at a ceremony in northern Israel and declared that the Israeli military “will restore security and prosperity to northern towns,” and that doing so “requires maintaining the security zone in southern Lebanon; it requires that we not leave there, as long as Israel’s security needs require it.”

Within days of the framework taking effect, Netanyahu stood at a ceremony in northern Israel and declared that the Israeli military “will restore security and prosperity to northern towns,” and that doing so “requires maintaining the security zone in southern Lebanon; it requires that we not leave there, as long as Israel’s security needs require it.”

His defense minister, Israel Katz, went further, vowing the IDF would remain in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza “without any time limit.” Iran’s foreign minister has called for a complete halt to Israeli military action in Lebanon and placed responsibility for enforcing the framework squarely on Washington. Hezbollah has continued to engage Israeli forces along the border. The agreement that took months to negotiate is, in practice, already being tested by the one regional actor it was never able to bind.

A President Losing Patience

What makes this moment different from previous........

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