[Opinion. Is there still any doubt that Israel is a rogue state? Of course, Israel was too cowardly to fight Iran even though they started the war. They bailed after two weeks, targeting Lebanon and leaving the US with its hand in its pants. The US negotiated a very delicate peace agreement. Now Israel, the war state, wants to make sure they don’t act in good faith.] Israel Threatens to Blow Up Trump’s Peace Deal With Iran President Trump is declaring victory with his Iran deal, but Israel isn’t on board. The New Republic: 16 Jun 2026 Israel is refusing to remove its IDF troops from Lebanon, even after the U.S. and Iran announced a memorandum of understanding that hinges on the withdrawal. The move could once again jeopardize any chance of a peace deal, as one of Iran’s primary demands is the end of Israel’s bombardment and occupation of Lebanon. “Israel is not subordinate to the United States, and we are an independent and sovereign state,” said Israel’s right-wing National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who has called for the flattening of Beirut and the kidnapping of Lebanese women and children. “We must not withdraw from any territory that our fighters have occupied and cleared of terrorist infrastructure,” he added. Defense Minister Israel Katz also declared that the Israel Defense Forces would remain in Lebanon “indefinitely.” “The area will be cleared of local residents and all terrorist infrastructure, above and below ground—including the houses in the contact villages that served as terrorist outposts—will be destroyed,” he said. These statements make President Trump’s Sunday announcement of a deal ending the war all the more tenuous, as a final deal isn’t scheduled to be signed until Friday. Trump already rebuked Israel on Sunday for bombing Beirut “on a special day when we are so close to a Peace Deal with Iran.” Nearly 3,800 people have been killed in Lebanon since March 2, with nearly 12,000 injured and over a million displaced.
