{"id":405217,"date":"2026-01-13T20:39:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T20:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/405217\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T20:39:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T20:39:08","slug":"as-iran-faces-unrest-israel-waits-quietly-for-trumps-next-move","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/405217\/","title":{"rendered":"As Iran faces unrest, Israel waits quietly for Trump\u2019s next move"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv3k1s001z27qj5l43crg2@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            As waves of protests have tested the Iranian regime\u2019s ability to manage dissent, the country with arguably the most to gain has been waiting in the wings, reluctant to intervene even when its regional adversary is at its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/01\/13\/politics\/islamic-republic-iran-protests-different\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">most vulnerable point in years<\/a>.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp20002356p91xx2vsk@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            After months of publicly threatening <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/world\/middleeast\/iran\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Iran<\/a>, Israel has gone quiet, waiting to see how the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/01\/12\/middleeast\/iran-kahrizak-tehran-morgue-protest-crackdown-dissent-intl-latam\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">protest movement<\/a> develops and giving US President Donald Trump space to make his own decision on whether to take action.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp20003356pacdqe4j2@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has held several security consultations on the situation in Iran in recent days, according to a source familiar with the matter. But the longtime leader, who launched a surprise attack on Iran last summer, has instructed his ministers to avoid public statements about the country.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp20004356pw7prfoi2@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            At the beginning of the protests, Science Minister Gila Gamliel posted a selfie on X wearing a \u201cMake Iran Great Again\u201d cap, tagging Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran\u2019s last monarch, as well as a video message supporting the protesters. The Prime Minister\u2019s Office has advised the ministers to remain silent at least twice since, according to the source.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp20006356pnhne630s@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            At the weekly government meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu said only that Israel was \u201cclosely monitoring\u201d events in Iran and supported the protesters\u2019 \u201cstruggle for freedom.\u201d   There was no threat directed at Tehran or at the country\u2019s supreme leader.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp20007356p7hr1p82r@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u201cThe overall instruction is to keep quiet,\u201d an Israeli official told CNN. \u201cThe understanding is that if we touch, we will only interfere.\u201d\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp20008356pb8ze17jx@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The protests began two weeks ago over rampant inflation, but they soon transformed into <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/01\/11\/middleeast\/profiles-iran-protests-killed-intl\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">widespread demonstrations<\/a> against the Iranian regime, spreading to more than 180 cities and towns across the country. The government has tried to divert attention away from the root causes of the protests, accusing the US and Israel of fomenting the unrest.\n    <\/p>\n<p>       <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2026-01-12t171407z-1858363860-rc2axiaxpm1i-rtrmadp-3-iran-economy-protests.JPG\" alt=\"Cars burn in a street during a protest in Tehran, Iran, on January 8.\" class=\"image_large__dam-img image_large__dam-img--loading\" onload=\"this.classList.remove('image_large__dam-img--loading')\" onerror=\"imageLoadError(this)\" height=\"1333\" width=\"2000\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp20009356poir9ji1x@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            For Israel to interfere now risks giving Tehran exactly what it needs most: the ability to deflect blame away from ongoing domestic problems and turn attention to a foreign adversary.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000a356p3bqdqigr@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u201cFrom Israel\u2019s viewpoint, this is not the right time to intervene,\u201d a former senior Israeli security official told CNN. \u201cThere\u2019s no reason to disrupt the internal weakening of the regime or to give it a pretext to rally domestic support.\u201d\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000b356ph54vaifu@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Yet, even as the politicians maintain their public silence, the unfolding drama in Iran\u2019s streets has dominated Israeli news coverage for the past two weeks, renewing anxieties about potential escalation, shaped by the memories of Iranian ballistic missile attacks during the 12-day war in June.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000c356pzbbwosig@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Municipalities in central Israel have informed citizens that shelters remain open as a precaution, while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) moved to downplay concerns about an imminent attack. \u201cIn recent days, many rumors have been circulating in light of the situation in Iran,\u201d IDF spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin wrote on X on Monday, reiterating the military\u2019s position. \u201cThe protests in Iran are an internal matter. We continue to hold ongoing situation assessments and will issue updates if there are any changes.\u201d\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000e356pyzp49jot@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The mayor of Ramat Gan, a city in central Israel, addressed public uncertainty on Facebook. \u201cThis time the situation depends less on us and more on what happens in Iran \u2013 or in President Trump\u2019s mind,\u201d Mayor Carmel Shama wrote. \u201cGood luck to the Iranian people. Their success in gaining freedom is also our success.\u201d\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000f356pnd6npybn@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The protests in Iran have however complicated some of Israel\u2019s military planning. The Netanyahu government has become increasingly concerned about Iran\u2019s ballistic missile activity, as well as what it believes is Tehran\u2019s rearming of Hezbollah in Lebanon. According to Israeli sources, operations that had been under discussion to counter these are now under review. Israel is looking at the situation from a \u201cdefensive\/responsive approach,\u201d one of the Israeli officials who spoke to CNN said.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000g356pav697luo@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u201cAny military operation could now give Tehran an excuse to divert attention from the unrest at home, and increase the risk of miscalculation,\u201d the former security official told CNN.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000h356p976orjr9@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Sima Shine, senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), and former head of the Research &amp; Evaluation Division at the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad, said the protests have effectively put any Israeli plans to attack Iran again \u201con hold.\u201d From the moment the US voiced its support for the protests, Shine said, \u201cit\u2019s only natural for Israel to prefer that Washington take the lead. There is little reason for Israel to intervene while President Trump himself is assessing options and planning his next move.\u201d\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmkcv4gp2000i356pibt5jrab@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            However, if Trump decides on military action in Iran, Shine said, \u201cthings could change \u2013 mainly in a scenario where the Iranians decide to retaliate against Israel, as they have threatened to do in response to possible American action.\u201d\n    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As waves of protests have tested the Iranian regime\u2019s ability to manage dissent, the country with arguably the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":405218,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[23,3,21,19,22,20,25,24],"class_list":{"0":"post-405217","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-united-states-of-america","12":"tag-unitedstates","13":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","14":"tag-us","15":"tag-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/405217","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=405217"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/405217\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/405218"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=405217"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=405217"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=405217"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}