During a rally on Wednesday, the former president criticized the Israeli prime minister for not being prepared ahead of the terror attacks, which began in Israel on Saturday.
"[Netanyahu] has been hurt very badly because of what's happened here. He was not prepared. He was not prepared, and Israel was not prepared," Trump told Fox News' Brian Kilmeade in an interview clip that was released on Wednesday.
Then at a campaign event in West Palm Beach, Trump took his criticism a step farther, saying that Netanyahu "let us down" ahead of the US government's 2020 killing of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani. Trump noted that Israel chose not to participate in the strike, though Netanyahu later praised it.
Additionally, Trump called Hezbollah "very smart" and called Defense Minister Yoav Gallant "a jerk."
Trump's comments have led to backlash from his Republican primary rivals. DeSantis took to X, the social media platform previously known as X, to criticize Trump.
"Terrorists have murdered at least 1,200 Israelis and 22 Americans and are holding more hostage, so it is absurd that anyone, much less someone running for President, would choose now to attack our friend and ally, Israel, much less praise Hezbollah terrorists as 'very smart,'" DeSantis said on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Trump's former Vice President Mike Pence said Hazbollah "aren't smart, they're evil."
"The former president also said when Russia invaded Ukraine in a similar unprovoked, unconscionable invasion a year-and-a-half ago, he said Vladimir Putin was a genius. And I will tell you, look, all the blame here lies at the feet of the Hamas and the Russian military in these unprovoked invasions, and they need to be held to account," Pence told the New Hampshire Today Show on Thursday.
Trump's comments place him in a predicament given the GOP's near-universal, staunch support for Israel.
The Trump campaign defended the former president's remarks in a post on X, saying he never praised Hezbollah.
"President Trump was clearly pointing out how incompetent Biden and his administration were by telegraphing to the terrorists an area that is susceptible to an attack. Smart does not equal good," read a post from the campaign's "War Room" account. "It just proves Biden is stupid. And now you look stupid, Ron."
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