Trump says Israel can't eliminate Hezbollah as 4 soldiers die

President Donald Trump's public criticism of Israel's military campaign against Hezbollah marks a sharp break between the two allies as a US-brokered truce with Iran faces its first major test.

President Donald Trump said Israel is failing to eliminate Hezbollah in Lebanon, a public rebuke that threatens to fracture US-Israeli relations and upend a fragile 60-day truce with Iran. Speaking at the Group of Seven summit in France, Trump made the contradictory claims that the war was both not speedy enough and not careful enough, telling reporters Israel "should have been able to do the job faster" while also saying "too many people are being killed."

"Trump is not in the business of these prolonged wars, forever wars," said Ksenia Svetlova, executive director of the Regional Organization for Peace, Economics and Security. "Trump's goal is no war in Lebanon, and consequently no war with Iran, because Iran ties these two things together."

The comments came as four Israeli soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon on Friday, including a battalion commander, in the deadliest incident since the US-Iran memorandum of understanding was signed June 17. Israel responded by striking 300 Hezbollah targets over two days, killing approximately 100 militants, according to the Israeli military. Lebanon's health ministry reported 47 people killed in the strikes on Friday alone.

At stake is the viability of the 14-point US-Iran agreement, which requires a cessation of hostilities on all fronts including Lebanon — even though neither Israel nor Hezbollah were party to the deal. Iran has suspended plans for direct talks in Switzerland, citing Israel's continued operations in southern Lebanon as a violation of the accord.

Oil Risk Premium Widens as Strait of Hormuz Looms

The Strait of Hormuz handles about 21% of global oil trade, and Iran's threat to re-close the waterway has raised the risk premium in crude markets. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned commercial vessels not to approach the strait, claiming Israel's actions in Lebanon violated the MOU. The US Central Command countered that the strait remains open, with 55 commercial vessels transiting on Saturday carrying more than 17 million barrels of oil. Gold gained as investors rotated into haven assets, while defense stocks showed mixed performance.

A Diplomatic Straitjacket for Israel

Trump's commentary has left Israel navigating between two irreconcilable demands: sustain military pressure on Hezbollah and risk losing US diplomatic cover, or scale back operations and leave the Iran-backed militia intact on its northern border. The president suggested subcontracting the fight to Syria's Islamist president, Ahmed al-Sharaa — a proposal analysts dismissed as unrealistic given Syria's fragile state after more than a decade of civil war.

"Israel can, first of all, present its own strategy for Lebanon," Svetlova said. "So what do we want to happen? How do we want it to happen? Anybody who looks at the Lebanon scene understands that you cannot achieve this goal by military means only."

The last time a US president publicly broke with Israel on a military campaign was in May 2024, when then-President Joe Biden paused a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs over concerns about civilian casualties in Rafah. That dispute was resolved within weeks. The current rift is more fundamental, touching on whether the US will continue to back Israeli operations against Iranian proxies.

What Comes Next

Direct US-Iran talks scheduled for Friday in Switzerland were postponed after the Lebanon flare-up, with Vice President JD Vance's travel canceled. Vance said Saturday he would travel once Iranian principals arrive. The 60-day negotiating window laid out in the MOU is extendable by mutual consent, but each day of fighting in Lebanon erodes the trust needed for a broader deal.

For investors, the key variable is whether the Israel-Hezbollah front can be stabilized before the US-Iran talks collapse. If fighting continues, the risk of a full Strait of Hormuz closure — which would disrupt the flow of roughly 17 million barrels of oil per day — could push crude prices higher.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.