After the emergence of conflicting accounts regarding whether Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu coordinated with US President Donald Trump ahead of Israel’s strike on Iran’s South Pars gas field, Netanyahu said Israel acted independently.
“Fact number one, Israel acted alone against the Asaluyeh gas compound,” he said. “Fact number two, President Trump asked us to hold off on future attacks, and we’re holding off.”
Trump had earlier said the strike was not coordinated with Washington and indicated Israel would avoid further attacks on Iranian gas infrastructure, while warning the US could intervene if Iran continued targeting Gulf energy sites.
He later said he had personally instructed Netanyahu not to hit oil and gas facilities. “I told him, ‘Don’t do that,’ and he won’t do that,” Trump said.
However, in a bizarre contradiction, US officials told Times Of Israel that they had known about the operation well in advance, noting it to be well planned, and coordinated.
At the Pentagon, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth called the strike “a warning” and urged Tehran to halt its retaliatory attacks on energy infrastructure, which have further driven up fuel prices.
The exchange comes amid intensifying strikes on critical energy assets. Following the South Pars attack, Iran launched fresh waves of drones and missiles at Gulf targets, including strikes on Qatar’s Ras Laffan gas hub that caused damage and fires, according to QatarEnergy. Drones were also intercepted over Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province.
Iran has also effectively halted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of global oil supply normally passes, raising fears of wider economic disruption.
Netanyahu dismissing criticism that he had drawn the US into the conflict, said: “Does anyone really think that someone can tell President Trump what to do? Come on,”, and remarked that Trump “always makes his decisions on what he thinks is good for America.”
Acknowledging the human cost of the war, the Israeli premier referenced his brother Yonatan Netanyahu, who was killed during the 1976 Entebbe operation. “The loss of servicemen is painful… the cost to bereaved families is enormous,” he said, extending condolences to Israeli and American families.
Netanyahu defended Israel’s role as a US ally, saying the two countries shared the objective of preventing Iran from developing nuclear capabilities. “Our partnership is the only way to avoid this catastrophic development,” he said, adding: “I misled no one.”
He also pointed to longer-term strategic aims, including developing alternative energy routes that bypass chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb. Proposals include pipelines across the Arabian Peninsula to Israel’s Mediterranean ports, which he said could “do away with the chokepoints for ever” and reshape regional energy flows.
On a note of hope, Netanyahu added that he expected the war to conclude sooner than widely anticipated.
