Trump says Netanyahu ‘let us down’ before 2020 airstrike that killed top Iranian general
Trump’s comments at a West Palm Beach, Florida, rally on Wednesday were quickly denounced by one of Netanyahu’s allies, the White House and by several Republican presidential rivals.
MIAMI: Former President Donald Trump has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of betraying him just before the U.S. killed a top Iranian general in 2020 and is questioning the country’s intelligence prowess as it responds to Hamas’ deadly attack.
Trump’s comments at a West Palm Beach, Florida, rally on Wednesday were quickly denounced by one of Netanyahu’s allies, the White House and by several Republican presidential rivals, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Most American leaders, including the Republican presidential contenders, have lined up behind Israel after the Hamas invasion that President Joe Biden said was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. At least 2,500 people have died on the Israeli and Palestinian sides.
But Trump, the early front-runner for the GOP presidential nomination who has long tried to paint himself as a fierce defender of Israel, offered stark criticism Wednesday night. He told the rally crowd that his prayers were with Israel and again vowed to stand by the country and back efforts to destroy Hamas — before he went on to describe a “bad experience” with Israel’s leaders that he had never shared before.
“Israel was going to do this with us, and it was being planned and working on it for months,” he said about the coordination to kill Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s Quds Force. “We had everything all set to go, and the night before it happened, I got a call that Israel will not be participating in this attack.”
“Nobody’s heard this story before,” Trump said. “They didn’t tell us why.”
“I’ll never forget that Bibi Netanyahu let us down,” he said.
“We were disappointed by that. Very disappointed,” he said. “But we did the job ourselves, with absolute precision … and then Bibi tried to take credit for it.”
Trump also pointed to intelligence failures ahead of last weekend’s onslaught, which caught Israel by surprise, saying the country had to “strengthen themselves up.”
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