US-Iran Ceasefire Leaves Israel Feeling Weakened and Betrayed

A profound sense of dismay, anger, and betrayal has gripped Israeli society in the wake of a ceasefire agreement between Washington and Tehran. While global markets celebrated the news, Israel, excluded from the negotiations, is left counting its disappointments. The mood in Tel Aviv is somber, with tens of thousands of young Israeli conscripts deployed in Lebanon, Gaza, the West Bank, and Syria. The announcement of a deal by Donald Trump to end the war "permanently and immediately on all fronts" was met with shock and rage. "Trump let us down," lamented a Tel Aviv hotel manager, with another resident bluntly stating, "Netanyahu must go. We need new leaders." A pervasive feeling across the Israeli street is that Iran has emerged from the US-Israeli war stronger and more dangerous. The surge in global stock markets, following Iran's promise to ease its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, only amplified this sentiment, implicitly confirming the power of Israel's arch-enemy. Opposition leader Yair Golan sharply summarized the prevailing mood, stating, "This morning, the citizens of Israel wake up to an agreement between the United States and Iran concluded over Israel's head. With a stroke of a pen, immense military successes, achieved by the courage of our pilots and the blood of our fighters, have been erased, while Netanyahu remained on the sidelines: weak, sick, isolated, and without influence. Trump signs an agreement that pours billions into the coffers of the ayatollah regime, leaves the nuclear infrastructure intact, leaves the ballistic threat unchanged, and offers a lifeline to the murderous regime in Tehran."