US President Donald Trump has condemned Israel's counter-attack in Lebanon, saying the strike near Beirut should not have taken place, "particularly on a special day when we are so close to a Peace Deal with Iran," he wrote on his Truth Social platform on Sunday.
The news website Axios later quoted Trump as saying of Israel's action: "It is so bad - I couldn't believe it. An hour before we are supposed to sign the deal."
On Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump added: "Why did Bibi have to do a fucking attack? I was so pissed off. I let him know. He has no fucking judgement. I let him know that."
The Israeli Air Force attacked suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut again on Sunday, following attacks by the Iranian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah militia on northern Israel.
Trump wrote on Truth Social that Israel had the right to defend itself against threats, but said the attack it had responded to was insignificant, and no one had been killed or injured.
Trump called on all sides to show restraint. He said a deal with Iran was close that would bring peace to the region, including Lebanon. "There should be no more attacks by Israel anywhere in Lebanon, but there should also be no more attacks by any other party, including Hezbollah, against Israel," Trump wrote.
Iran had called into question a possible agreement on a framework deal with the US following the Israeli strikes near Beirut. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps - Iran's elite military force - threatened Israel with retaliatory strikes.
Trump had held out the prospect of signing a framework agreement on Sunday, the day he himself celebrates his 80th birthday.
