US President Donald Trump delivered a blunt critique of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press interview, stating their relationship is “good, but we have to keep him a little bit sane”

The remark came when Trump was asked by Axios, an American media outlet, about his ties with the Israeli premier amid ongoing efforts to end fighting in Lebanon.

Trump asserted he can control Israeli military actions in Lebanon because officials there “do as I say.”

He highlighted American military superiority, saying that the US provides “the guns” and “B-2 bombers,” and claimed that without his intervention, Israel would have been “eviscerated,” echoing his remarks earlier this week, asserting, “without the United States, there would be no Israel.”

Earlier this week, the US president said he advised Netanyahu to use a “softer touch” in Lebanon, saying Israel does not have to “knock down a building every time somebody walks into it that’s from Hezbollah,” referring to frequent Israeli bombing of Lebanon, including many residential areas.

Trump’s latest remarks coincide with the announcement of a new ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah that took effect on Friday afternoon.

The truce follows an escalation that killed 47 people in southern Lebanon and four Israeli soldiers since early Friday.

According to official figures, Israel’s military offensive in Lebanon since March 2 has killed 3,912 people, injured 11,873 others, and displaced more than one million residents.

Israel continues to occupy areas in southern Lebanon, some for decades and others since the latest conflict.

During its recent military campaign, Israeli forces advanced more than 10 kilometres into Lebanese territory.