Netanyahu urges Trump to resume attacks on Iran ahead of the Israeli elections
The Israeli Prime Minister is pushing for military action against Tehran ahead of the Israeli election and the mid-term elections in Washington. Trump is playing for time and says: ‘I will make a decision soon’
According to the Israeli channel “N12”, which cites officials familiar with the talks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly urged US President Donald Trump last week to resume military operations against Iran before the Israeli elections on 27 October. Mid-term elections are also scheduled for 3 November in the US.
Netanyahu’s plan
US officials told the Israeli channel that they had the impression Netanyahu wanted to launch an attack before the elections. The pretext would be developments in Iran’s nuclear programme described as worrying. Although Trump has publicly stated that he will not resume attacks against Iran before the US mid-term elections, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and the US Central Command (CENTCOM) are maintaining a high level of operational readiness and are finalising preparations in case Trump changes his mind, reports N12, citing sources.
Trump awaits a decision
The Israeli channel also quotes an American source as saying that Netanyahu had ‘discussed on several occasions’ the possibility of resuming the attacks and that Trump had told him he could ‘go ahead with the preparations’, without, however, making any official commitment to authorise a military operation. The same source states that Trump could order an attack immediately, at a later date, or decide never to authorise it. According to reports, Trump’s position on the matter has changed several times over the course of just a few days.
Speaking to journalists today, US President Donald Trump said he would be making ‘a decision on Iran very soon’. Trump went on to add that “Iran is a failed state. It has no economy. It has 300 per cent inflation. It has no money. It doesn’t pay its soldiers. It doesn’t pay anyone. We will make a decision on Iran soon.”
Risk assessments of Iran’s nuclear programme
At present, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office has denied that Netanyahu is seeking to start a war against Iran ahead of the elections. According to critics, such a move would be politically motivated. According to reports, the IDF Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, has warned that a resumption of hostilities before the Israeli elections could lead to their postponement. According to reports by N12, Israeli security officials maintain that the intelligence assessment of threats from Iran has not changed to such an extent as to justify a joint Israeli-American operation in the next two or three weeks. However, in recent days, Iran is reported to have carried out ballistic missile tests from various locations, apparently as part of an effort to rebuild its missile programme, which has suffered significant deterioration. Military assessments indicate that this rebuilding is still proceeding slowly and remains incomplete.
