United States President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (File Photo) As reports surfaced of a tense exchange between US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Iran, Israel's ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, sought to downplay talk of a rift, insisting the two leaders remain close allies despite occasional disagreements. His remarks came after reports that Trump urged Israel to scale back military action against Iran as the US pursues a broader diplomatic settlement with Tehran. "They have a deep friendship that goes back some 40 years, and sometimes lovers have a spat, and sometimes the tension in the room and on the conversation can get a little heated," Leiter said while talking to Fox News. The Israeli diplomat claimed that while the Israeli leader "decided" to "lower the temperature" on military action against Iran at Trump's request, the US president understands "full well" Israel can't "absorb ballistic missiles into our country without responding". "For the most part, we're dealing with a very, very close collaborative effort between the United States and Israel, and there's tremendous understanding," he added. Speaking to Axios on Monday, Trump said he had urged Netanyahu to exercise restraint following a recent exchange of strikes between Israel and Iran. "I said, 'Bibi, you better be careful, or you will be on your own very soon,'" Trump said. The president also said Israel provided the United States with only limited advance notice before carrying out strikes on Iran on Sunday. "Israel gave us very late notice," Trump told the news outlet. Trump said several countries in the region had contacted him following the escalation and urged him to intervene with the Israeli government. "These countries were very concerned. They love the deal that we have been negotiating," he said, without identifying the countries involved. In his first public remarks since Iran began launching missiles at Israel, Netanyahu said Tehran had sought to "force a new equation" through its retaliation. The latest fighting marked the most serious escalation since the ceasefire announced on April 8. Meanwhile, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned that it could retaliate by targeting infrastructure in Israel and in Gulf states. Ananya is a journalist with a strong grounding in breaking news and a deep-rooted passion for geopolitics. She has 6 years of experience in TV and Dig... View More