Netanyahu escalates: I will not ask for a “green light” from Trump to strike Iran

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Ahead of the upcoming Israeli elections and in the midst of escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu adhered to the goal of overthrowing the regime in Iran, considering that striking nuclear facilities alone is not enough to end the “Iranian threat.”

On Thursday, Netanyahu said that “strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities are not enough as long as the regime exists,” explaining that he had previously issued instructions to the army and Mossad that “the solution is to overthrow the Iranian regime,” according to an interview with Israeli Channel 7.

He also considered that "90% of the mission was accomplished in Iran" without clarifying the nature of what was accomplished and the remainder from his point of view, noting that "the survival of the Iranian regime will allow it to restore its capabilities."

He went on to say: "A year ago, Iran was about to destroy us with atomic bombs, and when it learned of that, it took the initiative to launch an operation that we would fight on our own, and good people here told me: OK, but we have to get a green light from the United States," explaining that his response was: "There is no green light. We have no other choice. Our presence is not a subject for negotiation."

On Thursday, Netanyahu denied the validity of a Financial Times report that US President Donald Trump prevented a large-scale Israeli attack on Iran that was planned to be carried out during the weekend of October 10, describing the report as “inaccurate and biased.”

Netanyahu added: “I will brief Trump on what we intend to do, but I will not ask him for the green light to strike Iran.”

This came after a report published by the British newspaper on Wednesday, stating that he pushed for a new military attack on Iran, but he was unable to move forward with it due to Trump’s opposition to resuming hostilities before the US midterm elections scheduled for November 3.

When Netanyahu was asked directly whether he had planned to launch an attack and Trump told him not to go ahead with it, he rejected the validity of the hypothesis on which the question was based, without specifying what aspects of the report he objected to. He said, "This report is incorrect. I will not go into correcting this biased report."

While the newspaper, which relied on three people familiar with the plans, reported that the Israeli army had prepared to carry out intensive strikes on Iranian targets over a period of several days, during the weekend of October 10, explaining that the proposed operation included targeting nuclear facilities, power stations, and other civilian infrastructure, in addition to additional sites linked to the Iranian regime.

Netanyahu's statements came in conjunction with an Israeli security official saying that the possibility of war breaking out with Iran increases with the passage of time, as he indicated an increase in the state of alert and daily assessments in coordination with the US Central Command (CENTCOM), according to what was reported by the Walla website.

These statements also came at a time when there are increasing indications of American and Israeli preparations for the possible resumption of military operations against Iran, as the New York Times reported, citing American officials and people familiar with the discussions, that the two sides have made plans to launch new strikes after the US midterm elections scheduled for next November 3, which may target nuclear facilities, energy infrastructure, and the Iranian missile and drone arsenal.

Note that this comes in parallel with the continuation of diplomatic efforts aimed at containing the confrontation, amid disagreements regarding the conditions for ending the war, the Iranian nuclear file, and the security of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The mediations have not yet succeeded in reaching an understanding that leads to a settlement of this conflict.