Newsletters
A senior Israeli official said Israel was notified of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to agree to a two-week ceasefire with Iran only at the last moment, with the announcement catching Jerusalem off guard even as it was included in the agreement.
An unnamed senior Israeli official told Israeli state broadcaster KAN that the ceasefire announcement came as a shock.
"Trump's decision surprised us. We received new information at the last moment when everything seemed concluded," the official said, adding that Israel nonetheless considers itself bound by the ceasefire.
The New York Times (NYT) also reported that Trump updated Netanyahu only shortly before announcing the ceasefire.
A White House source told CNN that Israel is part of the ceasefire agreed with Iran and will not carry out attacks for as long as the ceasefire holds and negotiations continue.
An Israeli source told KAN that the start date of the ceasefire depends on the opening of the Strait of Hormuz.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid, who heads the centrist Yesh Atid party, called the outcome the worst political disaster in Israeli history.
"There has never been a political disaster like this in our entire history. Israel was not even close to the table when decisions were made concerning the core of our national security," Lapid wrote on X.
"The army carried out everything that was asked of it, and the public showed remarkable resilience, but Netanyahu failed politically, failed strategically, and did not achieve any of the goals he himself set. It will take us years to repair the political and strategic damage that Netanyahu caused due to arrogance, negligence and lack of strategic planning," he added.
Avigdor Lieberman, chairman of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, warned that the ceasefire gives the Revolutionary Guards an opportunity to "reorganize."
He said any agreement with Iran without requiring it to renounce the destruction of Israel, halt uranium enrichment, cease ballistic missile production and end support for regional terror organizations "means we will have to return to another campaign under more difficult conditions and pay a much higher price."
Meretz-affiliated Democrats chairman Yair Golan also called the ceasefire a strategic failure. "He promised 'historic victory' and security for generations and in practice we received one of the most serious strategic failures Israel has known," Golan wrote.
"Citizens were killed, soldiers fell. The Israeli army did its part powerfully and achieved results, but the Netanyahu-Smotrich-Ben Gvir government again failed to translate them into victory," he added.
"Not one of the objectives was achieved: the nuclear program was not destroyed. The ballistic threat remains. The regime remains in place and actually emerges from this war stronger," Golan concluded.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
