Trump administration officials are fuming over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “madman’’ trigger-happy behavior even as the president plays nice with him, a new report says.
Recent aggressive actions by Netanyahu — including the bombing of Syria last week and the shelling of a church in Gaza despite President Trump’s warm embrace and chumminess with Bibi — have more than unnerved top US officials behind the scenes, Axios said.
“Bibi acted like a madman. He bombs everything all the time,” a White House official vented to the outlet. “This could undermine what Trump is trying to do.”
Trump has made ending foreign wars one of his top priorities during his second term.
As part of that effort, he has sought to thaw out long-strained US relations with Syria and give its new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, a chance despite his past ties to al-Qaeda and Islamic extremism.
Trump met with al-Sharaa in May and has since moved to scrap sanctions on Syria — but the situation is widely seen as very delicate. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that the war-torn country is weeks away from “potential collapse and a full-scale civil war of epic proportions.”
Netanyahu on Tuesday then authorized the bombing of a Syrian envoy, which was headed toward Suwayda to address the bloodshed between armed Bedouin tribesmen and the Druze militia, part of a minority group that Israel has vowed to protect.
Syria’s government claimed it was trying to stop the violence and restore order, but Israel accused it of helping in the attacks against the Druze. Additionally, Israel faulted the Syrian government for crossing a zone inside southern Syria that it has demanded remain demilitarized.
US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack urged the Israelis to stand down from the attack, and they agreed to do so, Axios reported. But then, after a brief break, they continued bombing Syria, including near the presidential palace.
Al-Sharaa declined to retaliate against Israel and agreed to pull troops back from Syria’s south.
“The bombing in Syria caught the president and the White House by surprise. The president doesn’t like turning on the television and seeing bombs dropped in a country he is seeking peace in and made a monumental announcement to help rebuild,” an official told the outlet.
Rubio reportedly demanded that Israel to stop the attacks on Syria on Wednesday which led to the ceasefire that’s still in effect. Top US allies in the region, such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia, complained to the Trump administration about Israel’s actions.
Israel’s bombing in Syria came just days after Netanyahu’s visit to the US, where he was given a warm reception at the White House and announced plans to nominate Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Top Trump administration officials, including Barrack and special envoy Steve Witkoff, complained to Trump about Israel’s bellicose actions and posited that the bombing campaign was motivated by Netanyahu’s domestic politics, according to Axios.
“The Israelis need to get their head out of their asses,” an official griped.
The bombing of Syria is far from the only issue with Israel. Another flashpoint was a recent deadly attack on the sole Catholic church in the Gaza Strip, in which three people were killed and 10 injured.
Trump called Netanyahu directly after that strike and pressed him for an explanation. Israel has since put out a statement expressing remorse for the attack.
“The feeling is that every day there is something new. What the f–k?” another top US official groused to Axios.
A fellow US official said, “Netanyahu is sometimes like a child who just won’t behave.”
Another point of friction between the Trump administration and Israel has been the killing of Palestinian American Saif Mussallet by Israeli settlers, something that US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee denounced as “terrorism.”
Huckabee has long been staunchly pro-Israel and even attended Netanyahu’s trial to back the prime minister amid internal corruption claims.
Last month, after Israel launched preemptive strikes against Iran in the middle of Trump’s negotiations with the theocratic regime, there had been speculation that the White House was uneasy with the attacks.
Rubio initially put out a bland statement acknowledging the strikes but refraining from endorsing them. Trump later dropped heavy-duty bunker buster bombs on key Iranian nuclear facilities.
Former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden have all had various issues and conflicts with Netanyahu, grumbling that he is too hawkish and not always trustworthy.
During the 2024 campaign cycle, Trump occasionally hinted at his own beefs with Netanyahu, at one point faulting him for the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack happening under his watch.
Trump also grumbled that Netanyahu agreed to help with the January 2020 US attack that took out Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani before backing out, as well as the fact that the Israeli prime minister acknowledged Biden’s electoral victory.
Since then, the two leaders have appeared to bury the hatchet. Despite the reported issues with Netanyahu behind the scenes, the Trump administration has refrained from knocking him publicly.
The White House did not comment on a Post request for comment.
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