Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly called off a major strike on Iran with fighter jets on the runway, after US President Donald Trump instructed him on Monday not to escalate Israel’s fight with the Islamic Republic.

Instead, in a brief address to the nation on Monday, Netanyahu said he would halt attacks on Iran “for now,” but warned that Israel would strike Iran and Hezbollah if it is attacked again.

Netanyahu made the comments on Monday evening after conflict erupted between Israel and Iran for the first time since a ceasefire took effect in early April. After Hezbollah bombed northern Israel, Israel struck Beirut on Sunday, prompting Iran to fire a missile at northern Israel. Iran and its Yemeni proxy, the Houthis, fired missiles at Israel on Monday as well. Israel struck Iran in response.

Following the exchange of fire, Trump reportedly told Netanyahu on Monday to hold off on further attacks. The US president, who began the war in late February in partnership with Israel, told Channel 12 that he warned Netanyahu amid the conflict that if Israel escalated the fight, it could now be left alone.

The president and prime minister reportedly spoke multiple times over the course of Sunday and Monday, with Trump urging an end to the renewed conflict and Netanyahu making the case for Israeli strikes. Iran also said it would hold its fire.

A call between the two men on Monday afternoon, according to Channel 12, marked a turning point: Around 4:30 p.m., the network reported, Netanyahu approved a major operation against Iran to take place later in the day. A New York Times reporter also described the planned attack as “massive.”

But shortly afterward, Trump called him and instructed him to halt any further attacks so Washington could pursue a deal to end the war. Netanyahu agreed, calling off the operation while aircraft were prepared for takeoff, leading to “considerable confusion” within the military high command, Channel 12 reported.

According to the report, some Israeli officials characterized the leaders’ conversation as one of mutual understanding, but other sources said it was effectively a directive from the president.

PM: ‘We’ll respond with force’ if Iran, Hezbollah attack again

Netanyahu made his first comments on the renewed fighting later on Monday evening in an apparently prerecorded Hebrew video address lasting less than three minutes. In the statement, he defended Israel’s strikes but said they would end for the time being.

“After Iran attacked Israel, I directed the IDF to strike military and economic targets throughout Iran,” Netanyahu said.

“At present, the fire on this front has been halted, because after the terrorist regime in Tehran was struck, it stopped........

© The Times of Israel