Trump says he will press Israel to hold back after Iran retaliates for Beirut attack

U.S. President Donald Trump said on ​Sunday he would tell Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to strike back after Iran fired a salvo of missiles at Israeli targets in retaliation for an attack on the outskirts ‌of Beirut, news outlet Axios reported, according to Reuters.

Iran has long said any peace deal with the U.S. would depend on a ceasefire also holding in Lebanon, which Israel invaded in March in pursuit of Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters who fired rockets and drones across the border in solidarity with Tehran.

But Israel earlier on Sunday launched strikes in the Beirut area for the first time since the U.S. announced a truce plan for Lebanon last week.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they had targeted Ramat David air base, near Nazareth. The Israeli military ​said it identified missiles launched from Iran and that its defense systems had intercepted them.

Trump, who was spending the weekend at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, and Netanyahu spoke by phone ​for a little less than half an hour, an Israeli official said, without giving further details. The White House and the Israeli prime minister's office did not ⁠immediately respond to requests for comment.