Israel launches fresh strikes on Lebanon despite Trump criticism

According to Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA), Israeli jets struck the Nabatieh al-Fawqa area and the outskirts of neighboring Kfar Tebnit on Wednesday. The Israeli military has not yet commented on the strikes but has previously stated it is targeting the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.

The strikes come after Trump criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, saying he needed "to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon." Speaking at the G7 summit in France, Trump also said Israel had been fighting Hezbollah for "too long and too many people are being killed."

Both Israel and Hezbollah have continued attacks since the US-Iran agreement was announced on Sunday night. Earlier that day, an Israeli airstrike on Beirut in response to a Hezbollah cross-border rocket attack had put pressure on efforts to finalize the deal.

Trump told the G7 he had a "great relationship" with Netanyahu but said he "didn't like that he did an attack... that was too much." He added: "Without the United States, there would be no Israel. Without me, there would be no Israel because no other president was willing to do what I did."

Netanyahu said on Monday that Israeli forces would remain in Lebanon "for as long as necessary." Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that any Israeli attack on Lebanon or continued military presence would be seen as a violation of the interim agreement with the US.

The contents of the memorandum of understanding have not been officially released. Mediator Pakistan says it includes Lebanon. Both sides were expected to sign the deal on Friday in Bürgenstock, Switzerland. Trump said he would likely hold a news conference to read the agreement "word by word" and claimed it means Iran will "never have a nuclear weapon" and that the Strait of Hormuz will reopen toll-free.