Israel does not exclude limited attack on Iranian nuclear sites despite Trump giving up plan
Israel has not ruled out an attack on Iranian nuclear plants in the coming months, despite US President Donald Trump told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the United States is not ready to support such a move.
This was reported by the Times of Israel, citing an Israeli official and two others familiar with the issue.
Israeli authorities have said they will prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, and Netanyahu has insisted that any negotiations with Iran must lead to a complete abolition of its nuclear program.
US and Iranian negotiators will hold the second round of preliminary nuclear negotiations in Rome today.
Over the past months, Israel has suggested the Trump administration a series of options for attacking Iran’s facilities, including some with a late spring and summer time, sources said.
Plans include a combination of air strikes and operations of commandos that vary in intensity and could hinder Tehran’s ability to arm its nuclear program in just a few months or a year or more, sources said.
The New York Times said on Wednesday that Trump had told Netanyahu at a White House meeting earlier this month that Washington wants to prioritize diplomatic talks with Tehran and is not ready to support an attack on the country’s nuclear plants in the short run. Trump later denied that he had « given up » the planned attacks.
But Israeli authorities now believe that their military could instead carry out a limited attack on Iran that would require less US support. Such an attack would be significantly smaller than those that Israel initially proposed.
