Israel hits Iran with retaliatory strikes despite Trump’s call for restraint

Israel on Monday said that it had struck military targets in western and central Iran in retaliation for Tehran’s missile strike on the country, the first such bombardment since a ceasefire took effect on April 8, Reuters reported.

The strikes came despite reports that United States President Donald Trump had urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to refrain from further attacks.

Hours earlier, Trump had said that new strikes by Israel and Iran would not affect his administration’s peace talks with Tehran, adding that Netanyahu “does not call the shots”, the news agency reported.

Tehran had warned of retaliation after Israel struck the southern suburbs of Lebanese capital Beirut on Sunday despite Washington’s recent calls for restraint, AP reported. Israel claimed that the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah had fired at northern Israel earlier in the day.

On Monday, Israel also said that it intercepted a missile launched from the direction of Yemen towards its territory, Al Jazeera reported.

Israel’s strike on Beirut came days after Israel and Lebanon agreed on June 3 to renew a ceasefire and continue negotiations for a broader peace agreement amid tensions in West Asia, the two countries said in a joint statement issued with the US.

However, Hezbollah had rejected the deal. The group is not part of the Lebanese government and was not a participant in the...

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