As the war — and gas prices — escalate, Trump uses Israel to deflect domestic and allied pressure

By Tal Shalev, CNN

(CNN) — Moments after reports emerged that Israeli jets had struck Iran’s largest gas production plant on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump posted a combative message on Truth Social.

“We are putting them out of business,” he said, following the attack on Iran’s part of the world’s biggest natural gas reserves. Israeli officials were simultaneously briefing reporters that the attack had been conducted with US coordination and consent.

But hours later, after Iran retaliated with strikes on Qatar, Trump changed his tune. This time he stated unequivocally that the United States “knew nothing about this particular attack,” declaring that “NO MORE ATTACKS WILL BE MADE BY ISRAEL” on the South Pars gas field, unless Iran attacked Qatar. Same president, same day, same strike — two contradictory postures.

It was the second time since the joint US-Israeli military campaign against Iran began that Washington publicly distanced itself from Israeli strikes. Last week, after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) struck Tehran’s fuel depots, Axios reported the first significant disagreement between the two allies, with a Trump adviser quoted as saying, “The president doesn’t like the attack.”

The fuel depot attack, like all military operations in this campaign, was coordinated with the US in advance, two Israeli officials told CNN. One acknowledged, however, that the White House “might have been surprised” by the scale of the impact on fuel prices and the extent of the environmental damage. The other said Washington privately conveyed a message to Israel urging more restraint.

When Israeli jets began striking the gas production facilities on Wednesday, a separate Israeli source stressed that the operation was limited to natural gas and electricity infrastructure — not oil refineries — indicating that Trump’s concerns about fuel prices were factored into the target selection. But after Iran retaliated with strikes on Qatar, which sent oil and gas prices soaring once again, Trump rebuked Israel regardless.

“I told him (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) don’t do that, so he said we won’t do that,” Trump told White house reporters Thursday when asked about oil and gas facilities. “We get along great; everything is coordinated, but on occasion he will do something and if I don’t like it, so we’re not doing that.”

In a press conference Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the operation targeting a production facility of Iran’s South Pars gas field was carried out solely by Israel, without direct US involvement, and that Trump has asked Israel to hold off on further strikes of that kind.

Israeli officials told CNN the Wednesday attack was conducted in coordination with Washington. A third Israeli official said after the strike, “Israel would not do such a move without the US knowing about it.” A US official also told CNN that the US was “aware” of the strike.

While US Central Command has denied US involvement in the strike, former US ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro wrote on X that there was “zero, I mean zero, chance the IDF would conduct a strike in that location without giving CENTCOM full visibility,”

The White House directed CNN to Trump’s comments on Thursday when asked about the strikes.

Two well-placed Israeli sources believe Qatar was the main driver of Trump’s rebuke, noting it was not the first time that pressure from Doha has prompted Trump to distance himself from Israeli actions.

In September 2025, after Israel attempted to assassinate the Hamas political leadership in an airstrike in Doha, Trump issued a rare rebuke to Netanyahu on Truth Social, writing that the decision “was not made by me” and “does not advance Israel or America’s goals.” He later told reporters he was “very unhappy about the way that it went down.”

“I’m not thrilled about the whole situation,” he said.

Trump also facilitated a direct apology phone call from Netanyahu to Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, staged at the White House, even though the call caused the Israeli leader internal political backlash. Shortly afterward, the White House released its plan to end the Gaza war, and within two weeks, a ceasefire deal was announced securing the release of Israeli hostages.

“Every time Trump has to choose between Qatari and Israeli interests, he sides with the Qataris,” one of the well-placed sources told CNN. “And maintaining distance from the energy strikes gives someone to blame if fuel prices keep rising.”

CNN has reached out to the Qatari Foreign Ministry for comment.

Trump’s interventions also echo the events of June 2025, when he ordered the Israeli air force to recall jets en route to strike Iranian targets, effectively ending the 12-day war between Israel and Iran.

Israel is aware that a similar strategic intervention is possible. Driven by surging gas prices and domestic opposition to a prolonged war, Trump’s political timeline is likely shorter than Israel’s, and he may move to end the war abruptly once again.

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