Donald Trump has issued an urgent public demand for both Israel and Iran to immediately halt their exchange of fire, posting on Truth Social as the two countries traded missile and drone strikes in the most dangerous escalation of Middle East hostilities since the spring ceasefire collapsed.
“Israel and Iran must immediately stop shooting,” the US President wrote, in a post that came after Israeli forces carried out retaliatory strikes on Iranian targets despite Trump’s earlier personal appeals to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to hold back.
Prior to Israel’s decision to retaliate, Trump had told multiple US and international media outlets — including the BBC — that he was actively urging Netanyahu to show restraint following Iran’s missile barrage against northern Israel. Those appeals were not heeded.
The public post on Truth Social represents a significant escalation in Trump’s public pressure on both governments, moving from private diplomatic channels and media briefings to an open and direct demand addressed to both sides simultaneously. The use of Truth Social rather than conventional diplomatic statements signals the President’s frustration at being ignored by an ally he had explicitly asked to stand down.
The exchange of fire between Israel and Iran has sent oil prices surging toward $100 a barrel and has complicated Trump’s stated ambition of brokering a lasting peace deal between Washington and Tehran. The President said on Sunday he did not believe Iran’s missile strikes would derail those negotiations, but the situation on the ground has moved rapidly since those comments were made, with Israel’s retaliatory strikes now adding a new and dangerous dimension to a conflict that shows no sign of returning to the fragile ceasefire that held through April.
