US President Donald Trump called for more “surgical” strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon and said he is not demanding the conflict be included in a peace deal with Iran, in an interview broadcast Sunday.
“I’d like to see a more surgical attack on Hezbollah. I think it should be more surgical,” Trump told NBC’s “Meet the Press,” according to a transcript of the interview recorded Friday.
“I’d like to see Lebanon have a better life,” he added.
Israel carried out strikes on Sunday on the southern suburbs of Beirut, a stronghold of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, saying it was retaliating for attacks targeting its territory despite a ceasefire that has not stopped the cycle of violence.
Asked whether he was demanding that Lebanon be included in the Iran deal, Trump replied: “No, no.”
“Not at all. I’m not demanding,” he said. “I think they’d like to see it, but I’m not demanding.”
Trump has said previously he would like to “separate” the discussions on Lebanon from the negotiations on an agreement with Iran, while Tehran, on the contrary, wants to link the two conflicts.
Trump confirmed in an interview last week with The New York Post that he had a tense phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during which he reportedly reprimanded his close ally about the Israeli offensive in Lebanon.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon have destroyed numerous buildings and killed more than 3,560 people since the restart of fighting on March 2, according to the latest official figures.
On the Israeli side, 29 soldiers and one civilian contractor have been killed in Lebanon, according to the army.
Hezbollah dragged Lebanon into the broader Middle East war when it began attacking Israel to avenge Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the first wave of the US-Israel offensive.
A ceasefire that was supposed to end fighting between Israel and Hezbollah took effect on April 17, but has never been fully respected.
In the interview, Trump also said that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa — a former jihadist who has forged close ties with the United States — would “love to help” forge an agreement in the Lebanon conflict.
“We can recommend Syria. Syria’s doing a very good job of cleaning up their act. They have a very good leader,” he said. “And he would love to help.”
