The peace deal between the United States and Iran has been welcomed worldwide, with hopes for peace in West Asia and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. However, Israel doesn’t seem to be happy with the announcement.
The war in West Asia broke out on February 28, after the US and Israel launched a joint attack against Iran. Over the next three months, Gulf nations saw themselves embroiled in the conflict due to Iranian attacks on US bases.
Furthermore, Israel and Hezbollah also renewed attacks on one another, spilling the conflict over into Lebanon. Track the latest on the US-Iran war
With the memorandum of understanding set to be signed on Friday in Switzerland, several Israeli leaders have taken to the social media platform X, speaking out against the deal.
Among all the comments, the most prominent one is from Israeli defence minister Israeli Katz, who has stated that Tel Aviv stands ready to retaliate with “full force” if Iran attacks the state over its ongoing military campaign in Lebanon.
‘Will not compromise on security’
Since the announcement, Israeli ministers, especially from Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition, have stated that the agreement, announced by Trump, will not be applicable to Israel.
“Trump’s agreement does not bind us. Israel is not subject to the United States, and we are an independent and sovereign nation!,” wrote national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on X.
Adding its gratitude to the US and Trump, Ben-Gvir stated that the “State of Israel is not a banana republic.”
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“We are not partners to this agreement that does not ensure our security, and it does not bind us in any way. We must not compromise on anything less than the dismantling of Hezbollah, we must not withdraw from any territory that our fighters have captured and cleared of terror infrastructure, we must not return to a situation where thousands of terrorists sit on the fences of northern settlements, and certainly we must not remain silent for a moment in the face of fire directed at the State of Israel,” the far-right minister added further.
Finance minister Bezalel Smotrich also added that the agreement between the US and Iran is “bad for Israel and the free world.”
“We will have to continue the campaign to topple the regime ourselves and in creative ways, and ensure that Iran will never have nuclear weapons,” he wrote on X.
Defence minister Katz has also reiterated that Israel will not be evacuating from Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip.
“Holding territory and maintaining security zones are among the IDF’s greatest achievements… therefore we oppose an IDF withdrawal from Lebanon, despite all the existing pressures and those that will come,” Katz said during a press conference, adding that Netanyahu has informed the US President regarding this decision.
In a rare statement, Israel’s opposition has also expressed frustration towards the peace deal.
Yair Golan, the leader of the Israeli Democratic Party, stated on X that the announcement of the deal reflected a “tough morning” for the nation.
While criticising the Israeli PM, Golan added that with the US-Iran deal, “immense military achievements secured with the courage of our pilots and the blood of our fighters have been erased, while Netanyahu stood on the sidelines—weak, ill, isolated, and powerless.”
Meanwhile, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid took to X before the announcement and stated that if the reports are true, it would be “one of the most shocking failures of Israel’s foreign and security policy,” pinning the blame on Netanyahu.
Why is Israel against the US-Iran peace deal?
One of the key points of the US-Iran peace deal is the cessation of hostilities across all fronts, including Lebanon.
Israel, however, has reiterated that it will continue to act in Lebanon.
For Israel, this deal comes with the US ally on the sidelines, especially as negotiations remain between the US and Iranian delegations.
Speaking to an Israeli official familiar with the deal, the New York Times reported that one of Israel’s main problems with the framework remains around the Iranian nuclear and uranium enrichment.
A comment from Benjamin Netanyahu on the US-Iran peace deal is awaited. His last statement said that Israel will continue to work towards the goal of ensuring that Iran has no nuclear weapons.
The other hurdles for Israel are the release of frozen assets and Iran’s support for proxy forces in Lebanon, Yemen and the Gaza Strip.
In the past few years, Israel has been at war at least four times – the Gaza war with Hamas in 2023, a war with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2024, the 12-day Iran war in 2025, and now the US-Iran war with a renewal of fighting with Hezbollah.