Middle East war: Iran accuses Netanyahu of manipulating the US administration

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of manipulating the US administration into waging war on Iran.

Israel and the United States launched a joint attack on Tehran on February 28, triggering the Middle East war that has killed thousands and shaken the global economy.

"When he speaks in Hebrew, Netanyahu openly boasts about having manipulated the American administration into going to war against Iran in the name of Israel," Mr. Araghchi said in a message posted on X.

"Netanyahu explicitly laughs at how he influenced America through 1,000 hours of airtime on American channels," he added.

And "when he speaks in English, he praises the leadership of the American president," he said, calling Mr. Netanyahu a "snake."

On the first day of the war, Israeli-American strikes killed Iran's Supreme Leader and senior military officials. Iran retaliated with attacks against Israel and in Gulf states allied with Washington.

A ceasefire in April ended nearly 40 days of intense bombing, and a memorandum of understanding aimed at definitively ending the conflict was concluded in June.

But this agreement fell apart in July after a resumption of hostilities, and negotiations have been at a standstill ever since.

Leaving aside the military aspect, the United States says it wants to increase economic pressure on Tehran.

Iran and the United States exchanged strikes overnight from Sunday to Monday, after a month of relative calm.