Khaberni - American and Israeli sources revealed the details of a "tense" phone call that took place on Thursday between US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which preceded the latter's announcement of seeking direct negotiations for a ceasefire with Lebanon.
CNN reported on Friday, citing an Israeli source, that Netanyahu felt pressure from Trump and realized that not initiating direct negotiations could prompt the American president to unilaterally declare a ceasefire, which explains the sudden retreat in the Israeli stance.
This call was the third of its kind within a single week; it was preceded by a call on Tuesday in which Netanyahu tried to persuade Trump to dissociate the Lebanon front from the ceasefire agreement that the latter announced with Iran.
This was followed by a call on Wednesday in which Trump asked Netanyahu to reduce the intensity of attacks on Lebanon, after violent raids resulted in the martyrdom of 303 Lebanese in one day.
Netanyahu’s office, meanwhile, denied the authenticity of these reports, describing the talks about "tension" in the relationship as "fake news" and claiming that the conversations were friendly and conducted with full coordination, while the White House remained silent on these reports.
