We have to keep Netanyahu 'a little bit sane', says Trump

NEW YORK:

US President Donald Trump delivered a blunt critique of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press interview, stating their relationship is "good, but we have to keep him a little bit sane"

The remark came when Trump was asked by Axious, an American media outlet, about his ties with the Israeli premier amid ongoing efforts to end fighting in Lebanon.

Trump asserted he can control Israeli military actions in Lebanon because officials there "do as I say."

He highlighted American military superiority, saying that the US provides "the guns" and "B-2 bombers," and claimed that without his intervention, Israel would have been "eviscerated," echoing his remarks earlier this week asserting: "Without the United States, there would be no Israel."

Earlier this week, the US president said he advised Netanyahu to use a "softer touch" in Leb-anon, saying Israel does not have to "knock down a building every time somebody walks into it that's from Hezbollah," referring to frequent Israeli bombing of Lebanon, including many residential areas.