Netanyahu Orders Iran Strikes As Peace Talks Show Little Signs Of Breakthrough. Why Did Trump's ‘Don't Retaliate’ Appeal Fall Flat?

Fresh military conflict has erupted in West Asia as Israel launched targeted airstrikes against Iran, triggering widespread detonations across several critical cities, according to Iranian state media.

Explosions Reported Across Major Iranian Cities

Citing the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), state media reported that the sounds of explosions have been reported in the Iranian cities of Tehran, Tabriz and Isfahan. The IRGC further alleged that the Israeli military reportedly used "air-launched ballistic missiles" in the attack.

Confirming the operation, the Israel Defense Forces stated early Monday that it has struck military targets in the western and central region of Iran, though further specific details were not immediately available.

Trump’s Plea for Israeli Restraint

The kinetic escalation follows a high-level diplomatic intervention from Washington. Axios reported that US President Donald Trump has asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to retaliate against Iran's recent missile attack, citing a senior US official and an Israeli source familiar with the conversation.

Meanwhile, US President Trump said that Iran needs to "get back to the table and make a deal" following the missile attacks on Israel, according to the reports.

"It's certainly not going to help negotiations," Trump told Fox News.

"We're very close. I would say an agreement would be signed on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday of this coming week. And now this takes place," he said, quoted by reports.

"You've shot your missiles, that's enough. Get back to the table and make a deal," he added.

"I Call All The Shots": Trump Presses Netanyahu

Later, during a telephonic interview with the Financial Times, Trump asserted that the Israeli Prime Minister will have no option but to accept whatever agreement Washington reaches with Iran, emphasising that the final executive decisions rest with him.

"He won't have any choice," Trump said in a phone interview with the Financial Times. Making his position even clearer, Trump added: “I call the shots. I call all the shots. He doesn't call the shots.”

The Ceasefire Collapses

These sharp remarks from the US President came shortly after Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israel, marking the most serious violation yet of the ceasefire that was agreed upon in early April.

Despite the heavy missile bombardment, Trump indicated that he does not want Israel to retaliate. Prior to his conversation with Netanyahu, Trump told Axios that he planned to urge the Israeli leader not to respond militarily to Iran's missile attack. Tehran had previously stated that its missile strike was carried out in response to an Israeli attack in Beirut earlier on Sunday.

According to a senior US official, the Trump administration had not given Israel a "green light" for the Beirut strike. The official noted that Trump utilised the telephone call with Netanyahu to argue that the current juncture was not the time for further escalation.

Inside White House Diplomacy

"He told Netanyahu to hold off because 'we are close to doing something good in terms of a deal,'" the official said. The US administration reportedly believes there is still a viable opportunity to secure an agreement with Iran and wants to prevent any action that could derail those diplomatic efforts.

The official stated that while Netanyahu pushed back during the conversation, he ultimately "pseudo-agreed" to stand down and avoid immediate retaliation. The exchange was reportedly far less confrontational than a tense discussion between the two leaders last week.

The senior official further noted that Trump did not raise his voice during Sunday's discussion, adding, “We think the president bought a little bit of time. He is pretty adamant that we are close to a deal with Iran. I don't think anything is imminent in terms of an Israeli strike.”

Although Trump remains committed to a diplomatic resolution, he sounded less certain that an agreement with Iran is close than he has in recent months. Since Vice President JD Vance led the first round of talks with Iran in early April, Trump had repeatedly projected optimism about the chances of a breakthrough.

This time, however, his tone was more cautious. "I think the deal is going on," Trump told FT, adding, "We'll see what happens." Even so, he insisted that Sunday's missile attack would not affect his thinking. "The deal may make it on its own merit, or not, but this will not have any effect on it," he said.

Conversely, the Trump administration appeared convinced that negotiations with Iran have reached a critical stage. "We are in a moment in time, then why we jeopardise a potential deal when you are in the fourth quarter," the US official told Axios. "The President thinks that we have been in this thing for three months, now is the time to end this thing," the official added.

When asked about the potential consequences if negotiations ultimately collapsed, Trump's response suggested that military options remain on the table. "It means one of two things," he said.

"Number one, it would mean that possibly we would go in and take care of the rest of the place that we didn't take care of militarily," he told FT.

Trump then pointed to economic pressure as another alternative. "Or it would just mean that we would keep the blockade on Iran because the blockade has probably been more powerful than any attack that was ever made on that country," he said.

Meanwhile, state-run media reported Sunday that a senior advisor to Iran's supreme leader stated Tehran has threatened to block Bab al-Mandab, another vital maritime corridor in the Middle East, if Israel escalates its attack.

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