Netanyahu\u2019s comments came only days after Trump warned<\/a> Iran that it must reach a deal over its nuclear program or \u201cbad things\u201d will happen, and appeared to set a 10-15 day deadline before the US might take action.<\/p>\n \t Amid a massive US military buildup in the Middle East that has fueled fears of a wider war, Trump said negotiations with Iran were going well but insisted Tehran has to reach a \u201cmeaningful\u201d agreement.<\/p>\n Trump has repeatedly threatened military action against Iran, at first over a deadly crackdown on anti-regime protesters last month that killed thousands, then more recently over its nuclear program. But he has refrained from setting a hard deadline for taking action.<\/p>\n The New York Times reported on Sunday that Trump is considering launching a limited strike<\/a> on Iran in the immediate future to pressure Tehran to agree to his nuclear demands. If the Islamic Republic continues to hold out, that strike could be followed by a far larger campaign later this year targeting regime change, the report said.<\/p>\n The saber-rattling has put the entire region on edge, sparking concerns that a clash between the US and Iran would rapidly spread. Iran has warned that even a limited US strike would draw a strong military response, with strikes on US military interests in the region and on Israel.<\/p>\n Netanyahu kept his Knesset speech uncharacteristically short, eschewing the attacks on his political rivals that are traditionally the hallmark of such debates, and choosing instead to focus almost entirely on Iran.<\/p>\n \t Now is not the time for lengthy debate, he told lawmakers, instead issuing a call for unity ahead of next week\u2019s Purim holiday, which celebrates an ancient victory of the Jews of the Persian empire over those who sought to destroy them.<\/p>\n \u201cOn the eve of the festival of Purim,\u201d he said, \u201cwe will stand together and, with God\u2019s help, we will ensure the eternity of Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n Opening Monday evening\u2019s debate, Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman lashed out at Netanyahu, declaring him \u201cthe main guilty party\u201d responsible for October 7, \u201cthe largest and most terrible massacre in the history of the Jewish people after the Holocaust.\u201d<\/p>\n Liberman accused Netanyahu of trying to obscure his failures as prime minister, asking him, \u201cWhere is the \u2018total victory\u2019? You promised us total victory, but you brought total disgrace.\u201d<\/p>\n Opposition Leader Yair Lapid was also highly critical of Netanyahu, declaring that his historical legacy will be defined \u201conly\u201d by October 7.<\/p>\n \u201cI understand the attempt to write a different history. You know the truth. That\u2019s what scares you so much. History will only remember you for October 7,\u201d Lapid said, referring to Netanyahu\u2019s efforts to deflect blame for the devastating Hamas attack. \u201cHow you didn\u2019t see where the suitcases of money from Qatar were leading. How you didn\u2019t see where the wrong, destructive policy of strengthening Hamas was leading.\u201d<\/p>\n \t Lapid also took aim at the Prime Minister\u2019s Office\u2019s effort to remove the word \u201cmassacre\u201d from a bill commemorating October 7, stating that \u201cwhen babies are burned, when entire families are murdered in a mass murder, it\u2019s not an event, it\u2019s a massacre. There will be no stronger or more significant association, nothing else that will define your term as prime minister, other than the October 7 massacre.\u201d<\/p>\n However, after excoriating Netanyahu, Lapid also pledged that Israel will stand as one in the face of any escalation with Iran, telling the Knesset that \u201call differences of opinion will be put into deep freeze\u201d until the conflict is over.<\/p>\n \u201cAs in the past, I will mobilize for Israeli public diplomacy and strengthening Israel\u2019s international status,\u201d he declared. \u201cAs in the previous attack, I will go wherever necessary, from CNN to the British parliament, and tell them: \u2018You know that I am the head of the opposition, you know that Netanyahu and I are rivals, but Iran must be attacked with full force, the rule of the ayatollahs must be overthrown.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Jacob Magid and agencies contributed to this report.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tThis handout photo released by Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guards Corps\u2019s official website Sepanews on February 17, 2026, shows a rocket being fired during a military exercise by members of the IRGC and navy in the Strait of Hormuz. (SEPAH NEWS \/ AFP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AFP__20260208__96KL7NQ__v2__HighRes__CorrectionUsIranDiplomacy-e1771582362458-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tA handout photograph released by the US Navy on February 8, 2026, shows observers, including US lead negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, as they watch flight operations on the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) in the Arabian Sea, on February 7, 2026. (Hannah Tross \/ US NAVY \/ AFP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/F260223YS243-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tOpposition Leader Yair Lapid addresses the Knesset plenum in Jerusalem, February 23, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel\/Flash90)<\/p>\n
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