On a tense Monday morning in Israel, public and political outrage swept the nation following a Sunday evening announcement from Pakistani mediator Shehbaz Sharif that Washington and Tehran had finalized a comprehensive peace agreement to end months of open conflict.
Sharif, who stepped in as lead negotiator after the joint Israeli-US military campaign against Iran launched in February, confirmed the breakthrough in a post on his official X account. The Pakistani prime minister outlined that the draft deal requires an immediate and permanent ceasefire across all active theaters of conflict, including neighboring Lebanon. He also publicly thanked rival of Israel Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia for their behind-the-scenes support during the months-long negotiation process, noting the formal signing ceremony would be held this coming Friday in Switzerland.
Within hours of Sharif’s announcement, both US and Iranian officials corroborated the agreement. Former US President Donald Trump called the deal “complete,” while Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi confirmed a finalized text would be officially signed within 60 days.
Despite repeated confirmation from Pakistan, Iran, and the US that the deal mandates a ceasefire across all fronts including Lebanon, Israeli leadership immediately rejected the ceasefire clause and made clear the country does not consider itself bound by the terms of the agreement. Even as political backlash mounted, the Israeli Defense Forces launched a new wave of airstrikes and ground operations across southern Lebanon on Monday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has not yet delivered a public address on the diplomatic breakthrough, privately told Trump that Israel would reject any Iranian terms related to Lebanon, according to Israeli news outlet Ynet. Defense Minister Israel Katz doubled down on Netanyahu’s position in a public statement Monday, asserting that Israeli military forces would maintain an indefinite presence in security zones across Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza. Katz added that Israeli forces would continue clearing civilian populations from occupied territories and destroying residential structures classified as “terror infrastructure.”
Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who previously called for the total destruction of residential buildings in Beirut in response to Hezbollah attacks, took to X to voice fierce opposition to the deal. “The agreement with Iran is bad for Israel and for the entire free world,” Smotrich wrote, adding that Israel would be forced to continue its military campaign against Iran independently and would retain full operational freedom for its forces in Lebanon regardless of the US-brokered deal.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, another far-right member of Netanyahu’s governing coalition, echoed Smotrich’s rejection in his own X post. “Trump’s agreement does not bind us,” Ben Gvir wrote. “Israel is not a subordinate of the United States, and we are an independent and sovereign state. Israel is not a banana republic.” He added that the deal fails to safeguard Israel’s national security and “does not bind us in any way.” Multiple other sitting cabinet members also publicly pledged to continue military strikes against Iran despite the ceasefire agreement.
Culture Minister Miki Zohar told Ynet that his government’s only core concern is Iran’s nuclear weapons program. “If Israel sees that its security is in danger, it will strike Iran with force,” Zohar said. “Iranians will not only get down on their knees, but they will bow their heads as well.”
While most governing coalition members have avoided direct public criticism of Trump and Netanyahu, anger has spilled over across the Israeli political spectrum, with pro-Netanyahu media figures launching vitriolic attacks against US leadership. Yinon Magal, a prominent journalist with Israeli outlet Channel 14 widely viewed as a mouthpiece for Netanyahu, wrote on X that Israel had been abandoned by its closest ally amid its wars in Iran and Lebanon. Magal went on to label Trump a “loser” and Vice President JD Vance “scum,” and deployed a well-documented antisemitic slur to refer to US Middle East envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, calling them “little Jews.”
Another Channel 14 journalist, Shimon Riklin, argued Monday that “what Israel needs more than anything right now is sovereignty,” adding that the country must remind “treacherous America” that it prioritizes its own independent national interests.
The Israel Defense and Security Forum, a prominent right-wing Israeli think tank, issued a statement Monday arguing that “every agreement with the Iranian terrorist regime is ultimately doomed to fail, and the current agreement will be no different.” The group added that “this is the time to stand tall, prepare for what lies ahead, and not compromise on Israel’s interests in removing the threat from Lebanon and Iran.”
Opposition political figures across the ideological spectrum have seized on the diplomatic rupture to attack Netanyahu’s leadership and his handling of the ongoing war. Yair Golan, leader of the centre-left Democrats party, described Netanyahu as “weak, ill, isolated and lacking influence.” Golan argued that the deal allows for billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets to be unfrozen while leaving Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs fully intact, representing “years of failure” of Netanyahu’s Iran policy that has left “Israel weaker.”
Gadi Eisenkot, a former Israeli army chief of staff and potential future prime ministerial candidate, said the agreement fails to address any of Israel’s core security concerns. He added that nearly three years of conflict following the October 7 debacle have culminated in “a grim result of a failed government.”
Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett also joined the criticism of Netanyahu’s administration, saying it “is incapable of making decisive decisions and has led us into wars of attrition and stagnation.” Bennett pledged to oust Netanyahu in upcoming national elections, fix what he called the prime minister’s policy failures, and claimed he has a concrete plan to remove the current Iranian leadership from power.