Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (AFP via Getty)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered preparations for a major military offensive against Iran earlier this month, but the operation did not proceed amid President Donald Trump’s opposition to restarting the conflict before the midterm elections, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing three people familiar with the plans.
The Jerusalem Post disputed the account Wednesday, citing sources who said Netanyahu had not ordered Israel Defense Forces to prepare an attack for the weekend of Oct. 10 and that no such operation was imminent.
According to the Times, Netanyahu instructed the IDF to prepare a multiday bombing campaign targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, power plants, and other civilian infrastructure. The campaign was intended to surpass the intensity of the joint U.S.-Israeli offensive launched Feb. 28, the Times reported.
The Post, however, reported that neither Netanyahu nor Defense Minister Israel Katz had issued orders comparable to those preceding earlier military operations against Iran. The Post also questioned whether a renewed offensive would exceed the scale of the war’s opening days, citing sources who said Iran had not repaired enough of its damaged military infrastructure to warrant a larger campaign.
Sources told the Post that Israeli forces had been on heightened alert around Oct. 7 over concerns Iran might launch an attack around the anniversary of the Hamas-led terrorist attack on Israel in 2023.
The sources said the IDF remained prepared to respond to an imminent Iranian attack or participate in renewed hostilities if Trump authorized another joint U.S.-Israeli operation.
Trump wrote Oct. 8 in a post on Truth Social that the U.S. would not attack Iran before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, citing “productive” discussions with Tehran and the effectiveness of the U.S. naval blockade.
However, he has publicly discussed attacking Iran’s heavily fortified Pickaxe Mountain nuclear facility. Pentagon officials also continue developing military options, including the possible use of the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, known as the “mother of all bombs.”
Trump told Newsmax on Oct. 15 that the war would end soon “one way or the other.”
“The Iran war will be over very soon. It’s going to end very soon. One way or the other, it’s going to end,” he said.
“You know, they are negotiating with us. But one way or the other, it’ll end very soon. And oil will go dropping like a rock — and gas prices as well.”
It remains unclear whether the U.S. was expected to participate directly in the operation described by the Financial Times. One person familiar with the matter told the Times it was “not an unreasonable scenario” that Israel and the U.S. would restart strikes in the coming weeks.
“There will either be a deal or an attack,” the person said.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth made an unannounced trip to Israel on Monday, holding talks with Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials.
The Times reported that Israeli officials presented an updated list of Iranian targets based on new intelligence, including civilian infrastructure that had not been struck earlier this year. The War Department did not immediately respond to the newspaper’s request for comment.
Another person cautioned that Israel’s proposed operation could have been part of an effort “to pressure Iran” during negotiations and that Trump would ultimately decide whether to proceed with renewed military action.
Deputy White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told the Times, “Iran is in very bad condition, both economically and militarily.” She said U.S. efforts to blockade Iranian ports and facilitate Gulf oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz were succeeding and “the United States will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the midterm elections.”
The IDF has been on heightened alert for several weeks, according to the Times, taking the unusual step of canceling leave for all troops beginning Thursday through Israel’s parliamentary elections Oct. 27.
IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said the move was intended “to enable the democratic elections to take place safely and as scheduled.”
Netanyahu’s office did not respond to repeated requests for comment from the Times. The IDF declined to comment.
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