US officials express growing concern over Netanyahu’s ‘unhinged’ actions in Syria

Following Israel’s attacks on the Syrian Ministry of Defense, the US administration’s frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly increased.

A White House official speaking to Axios said, “Bibi acted like a madman. He’s bombing everything. This could undermine what Trump is trying to do.”

A second senior US official pointed to the bombing of a church in Gaza this week, stating that Trump called Netanyahu to demand an explanation and asked, “Every day it’s something new. What the hell is going on?”

A third US official said there is growing suspicion of Netanyahu within the Trump administration, with officials thinking he is “very trigger-happy” and destructive. “Netanyahu is sometimes like an unruly child,” the official commented.

Six US officials told Axios that despite a US-brokered ceasefire agreement on Friday that halted the escalation in Syria, the week ended with “the White House being much more concerned about Netanyahu and his regional policies.”

However, Trump has so far refrained from public criticism, and it is unclear whether he shares his advisers’ frustration. It is not entirely clear whether Trump shares his advisers’ recent concerns about Israel’s actions in Syria.

On Tuesday, Israel bombed a Syrian army tank convoy heading to the city of Suwayda.

Israel claimed the convoy entered a region in southern Syria that it had demanded be demilitarized and alleged that the Syrian army was participating in attacks against the Druze minority. Syria has denied these allegations.

According to a US official, Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack asked his Israeli counterparts on Tuesday to stand down for a diplomatic solution, and Israel agreed.

However, a short time later, Israel intensified its attacks. On Wednesday, Israel launched missiles at a Syrian military headquarters and near the presidential palace.

A US official stated, “The bombing in Syria caught the president and the White House off guard. The president doesn’t like turning on the television and seeing bombs being dropped on a country where he has just made a major announcement about wanting peace and helping to rebuild.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio also told Netanyahu and his team to stop on Wednesday. Netanyahu agreed in exchange for the Syrian army’s withdrawal from Suwayda.

But by then, several countries, including Türkiye and Saudi Arabia, had sent angry messages to the Trump administration about Israel’s actions, and several senior US officials had complained directly to Trump about Netanyahu.

These officials included Barrack and White House envoy Steve Witkoff. According to a US official, both are close friends of Trump.

According to Axios, the general consensus in the White House was that Netanyahu was bombing Syria due to internal pressure from the Druze minority in Israel and for other political reasons.

“Bibi’s political agenda has taken his logic captive. This will be a big mistake for him in the long run,” said one US official.

Another US official said it seemed the damage the Israelis had done to their reputation in the White House last week had not yet registered with them, joking, “The Israelis need to get their heads out of their asses.”

The tension in Syria emerged just days after Netanyahu’s visit to Washington, where he met with Trump twice. The two leaders appeared closer than ever following the war with Iran.

In addition to the attacks in Syria and the church in Gaza, the killing of Palestinian-American Saif Musallet by Israeli settlers last weekend has also increased the Trump administration’s backlash against Netanyahu’s government, which strongly supports the settlers.

Ambassador Mike Huckabee, who showed his support by visiting Netanyahu’s corruption trial a few days earlier, issued a series of statements calling the attack “terrorism” and demanding answers. On Saturday, he also visited a Christian community in the West Bank that had been targeted by settler attacks.

Huckabee, a long-time enthusiastic supporter of Israel, also criticized the Israeli government this week for making it difficult for American evangelicals to obtain travel visas.

Meanwhile, according to Axios, the Israelis were surprised by the US reaction to the Syria attacks.

A senior Israeli official said that in the first weeks after Trump took office, he had encouraged Netanyahu to occupy parts of Syria and had not previously expressed concern about Israeli intervention in Syria.

The official emphasized that Israel intervened only after its intelligence determined that the Syrian government was involved in attacks against the Druze. The official also denied claims that internal political calculations were involved.

The Israeli official said, “The US wants to maintain the stability of the new Syrian government and doesn’t understand why we are attacking Syria over attacks on the Druze community. We tried to explain to them that this is our commitment to the Druze community in Israel.”

The instability in Syria is a major concern for the administration. On Saturday, Rubio wrote on X that the Damascus government should help establish peace and stop the massacres.

But a senior US official said Israel cannot decide whether the Syrian government can exercise its right of sovereignty over its own citizens and territory.

“Israel’s current policy will lead to the destabilization of Syria. In such a scenario, both the Druze community and Israel will lose,” the official said.

In conclusion, the US officials who spoke to Axios warned that Netanyahu’s luck and Trump’s goodwill may be running out.