Critics have said the US decision to retreat from the region has led to a greater likelihood of conflict

As Israeli jets struck targets in Iran on Friday morning, the US moved quickly to distance itself from Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to target Tehran in an escalation that threatens an all-out war in the Middle East.

The unilateral strikes indicated a collapse of Donald Trump’s efforts to restrain the Israeli prime minister and almost certainly scuttled Trump’s efforts to negotiate a deal with Iran that would prevent the country from seeking a nuclear weapon.

It also will probably lead to an Iranian retaliation that could develop into a larger war between Israel and Iran, a new conflict that Trump has publicly sought to avoid.