One of the most common criticisms lobbied against the current Israeli government is that it’s a war-mongering outfit bolstered by U.S. militaristic might.
Another common criticism is that Israel wants to wipe out Iran, and would be willing to drag America into war to do so.
A report from the New York Times appears to contradict both of those claims.
According to the New York outlet, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was apparently the voice of reason — or at least one of them — imploring America not to attack Iran recently.
Trump, along with other Western powers, had been warning Iran not to use deadly force to quell roiling protests that had erupted in the Islamic Republic over its collapsing economy.
The riots, which began in late December, prompted Trump to threaten Iranian officials on social media — while strongly alluding to the potential of military intervention.
Donald J. Trump Truth Social 01.02.26 02:58 AM
If Iran shots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue. We are locked and loaded and ready to go. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President…
— Commentary Donald J. Trump Posts From Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) January 2, 2026
“If Iran [shoots] and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue,” Trump posted. “We are locked and loaded and ready to go.”
When reports began surfacing that Tehran was killing protesters and children, many predicted that U.S. military intervention was all but assured, based on Trump’s Truth Social post.
Trump further bolstered those concerns when he directly addressed the potential of the military conflict with reporters.
“We’re looking at it very seriously,” he told reporters while aboard Air Force One. “The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options. We’ll make a determination.”
Now, despite all that, it reportedly just took a phone call from Netanyahu to quash those considerations.
Of note, the New York Times also reported that it wasn’t just Israel telling Trump not to attack Iran. Other Arab nations also pleaded with Trump not to directly attack Iran.
The reason? Israel and its Arab neighbors feared that a U.S. strike on Iran would lead to a violent response against them.
While cooler heads appear to have prevailed — with Trump also recently claiming that Iran had stopped killing protesters — that doesn’t mean the U.S. president hasn’t taken any action against Iran.
On Monday, Trump announced a set of tariffs against any country trading with Iran, including big powers like China and Russia.
Donald J. Trump Truth Social Post 04:46 PM EST 01.12.26
Effective immediately, any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America. This Order is final and conclusive. Thank…
— Commentary Donald J. Trump Posts From Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) January 12, 2026
“Effective immediately, any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America,” Trump posted to Truth Social. “This Order is final and conclusive.”
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