Trump Suggests Syria Take Over Fight Against Hezbollah as Iran Launches Retaliatory Attacks

US President Donald Trump has suggested that Syria should take over the fight against the Iran-backed Hezbollah group instead of Israel, saying the country’s new leadership would “do a better job” of defeating the militant group, reported AP. Meanwhile, Iran launched drone and missile attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait in retaliation for fresh US airstrikes. Trump made the remarks amid Israel’s ongoing military operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon and rising tensions across the Middle East. Speaking on the sidelines of the G7 summit earlier this month, Trump said Israel’s military operations in Lebanon had gone on for too long and caused heavy civilian casualties. “You don’t have to knock down an apartment house every time you’re looking for somebody, because there are a lot of people in those apartment houses and they’re not all Hezbollah,” Trump said. “I suggested to Israel to let Syria take care of Hezbollah. ‘Cause to be honest with you, I think they’d do a better job,” he added. Days later, Fox News reported that Trump repeated the proposal during an interview held on the opening day of US-Iran talks in Switzerland. According to Yingst, Trump said he was disappointed that Israel could not “put Hezbollah away” and that he was “close to giving it to Syria” because he believed the country’s new leadership would conduct military operations with greater precision. Syria’s Islamist-led administration came to power after former President Bashar Assad was overthrown about a year and a half ago. Since then, Damascus has focused on rebuilding the country after more than a decade of civil war, reported AP. Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said, “There are people spreading rumors that Syria will intervene in Lebanon. This is not true. We are calling for a permanent end to the war and the strengthening of institutions and for there to be economic ties and a calming of the situation in Lebanon.” In a separate interview with Emirati television network Al Mashhad, he said Trump’s remarks had been misunderstood. “Trump spoke about Syria’s role in finding a safe and peaceful solution, but the statement was misinterpreted as if Syria were going to invade Lebanon tomorrow morning,” al-Sharaa said. He added that Syria had presented Washington with a diplomatic proposal that focuses on ending the war, reducing its humanitarian and economic impact and encouraging political solutions instead of opening another military front. Iran launched drone and missile attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait on Sunday in retaliation for fresh US airstrikes on Iranian military targets. Tehran also warned that negotiations with Washington would come to a “complete halt” if the United States continued its military operations. The attacks came hours after the US military struck Iranian surveillance systems, communication facilities, air defence sites, drone storage locations and mine-laying capabilities, reported AP. The US said the strikes were a response to Iran’s attack on a commercial oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. At the same time, tensions around the Strait of Hormuz intensified after a multi-national maritime body overseen by the US Navy expanded a shipping route near Oman to improve the movement of commercial vessels. Iran opposed the move and said that it alone has the authority to oversee navigation through the strategic waterway. Iran has repeatedly rejected outside involvement in managing the Strait of Hormuz. In recent days, Iranian forces attacked vessels using a United Nations-backed shipping route on the Omani side of the waterway, increasing tensions. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi repeated Tehran’s position during a visit to Iraq. “Any interference in this matter, any attempt to establish new or separate arrangements from those currently being carried out by the Islamic Republic of Iran, will only lead to further complications, delay the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and increase the level of tension,” he said. The United States and Iran are still negotiating an interim peace agreement. The talks include shipping arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, the removal of US sanctions and the future of Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile. Both countries have 60 days under a memorandum of understanding signed earlier this month to finalise the agreement. Iran targeted Bahrain and Kuwait, both of which host major US military facilities. Kuwait said its air defence systems intercepted two Iranian ballistic missiles and several drones early on Sunday. The Kuwaiti military said the interceptions caused no casualties or damage. In Bahrain, the Interior Ministry said Iranian missiles struck a residential building near Bahrain International Airport, reported AP. The attack destroyed the top floor of the eight-storey building, but authorities said no one was killed. Bahrain hosts the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet. Officials said the damaged building was not located near the naval base. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed responsibility for both attacks. Bahrain condemned the strikes. The country’s Foreign Ministry said, “A dangerous escalation reveals that what Tehran is doing is not a passing act, nor an isolated incident, but rather a deliberate approach and a systematic pattern of repeated aggression.” The latest American strikes followed an Iranian attack on the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker Kiku, which carried crude oil for Qatar’s state-owned energy company. The US military said it targeted Iranian military infrastructure linked to surveillance, communications, air defence, drones and naval mining operations. US President Donald Trump accused Iran of repeatedly violating the ceasefire. In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “We struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations, and coastal radar sites, for violating the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN!” He also warned Iran against further attacks. “If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” Trump said. Earlier in the week, another Iranian drone struck a merchant ship near Oman, prompting US retaliation. Last week, Israel and the Lebanese government signed a framework agreement aimed at ending the conflict. However, Hezbollah and Iran were not part of the agreement. Hezbollah rejected calls to disarm and dismissed the agreement. During his visit to Iraq, Araghchi urged the United States to pressure Israel to stop military operations and withdraw its forces from southern Lebanon. Overnight, Hezbollah fighters killed an Israeli soldier in the village of Deir Siryan, according to the Israeli military. Israeli forces also carried out two separate strikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday. Local media reported attacks in Taybeh and the Nabatiyeh area. There was no immediate information about casualties.