Israel backs Trump Iran strike pause, excludes Lebanon — SkimNews
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- Netanyahu's office said Israel supports Trump's two-week suspension of strikes against Iran but stated the ceasefire does not include Lebanon, in remarks issued Wednesday, April 8, 2026.
- Israel conditioned its backing on Tehran immediately opening the straits and halting attacks against the U.S., Israel, and countries in the region.
- The U.S. announced the two-week pause as a de-escalation measure to open a window for negotiations, and told Israel it remained committed to achieving their shared goals in upcoming talks.
- Israel said it supports U.S. efforts to ensure Iran no longer poses a nuclear, missile, or "terror" threat to the U.S., Israel, and Iran's Arab neighbors.
- Iran announced negotiations with the U.S. would begin Friday, April 10, 2026 in Islamabad.
Why it matters: Israel publicly endorsing a pause while excluding Lebanon preserves its operational freedom to keep striking targets there even as diplomacy opens — and Tehran's first concrete test is whether it reopens the straits before Friday's Islamabad talks, the explicit condition Netanyahu's office attached to its support.
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