Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of manipulating Washington into going to war with Iran, describing him as a “serpent”.
Araghchi made the accusation on Monday in a post on X, citing comments Netanyahu allegedly made about his influence over the US administration.
“In Hebrew, Netanyahu openly crows that he suckered the U.S. Administration into a war on Iran on behalf of Israel. Netanyahu explicitly laughs about how he ‘influenced’ America through 1,000 hours of airtime on U.S. networks,” Araghchi said.
“In English, he praises POTUS’ leadership. Serpent,” he added.
The conflict between Iran and the United States began on February 28 after US-Israeli strikes killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, alongside senior military officials.
Iran responded with attacks across the region as the fighting widened.
An April ceasefire halted the most intense hostilities, but sporadic attacks, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz, have continued to undermine hopes for a lasting peace agreement.
The United States has also shifted towards what it describes as a campaign of “economic asphyxiation” against Iran.
On Sunday night, the US struck the Iranian island of Larak, marking its first attack on the country in a month.
Iran subsequently said it had launched attacks on US military bases in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.
Last week, Netanyahu ruled out the prospect of an agreement between Iran and the US, while describing Iran’s leaders as “savages”.
Netanyahu has long opposed diplomacy with Tehran. He openly campaigned against the 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated under former US President Barack Obama.
However, he has been publicly cautious about criticising US President Donald Trump as Washington pursued a negotiated settlement.
