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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for another wave of strikes against Iran after Tuesday's U.S. midterm elections, two regional officials and a third person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press (AP), as U.S. forces carried out limited strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island.
One official said Netanyahu is working with senior administration officials to persuade President Donald Trump to launch a "quick but extensive" air campaign, and that Trump does not appear to have made a decision.
Netanyahu pressed for strikes during a weekend call with Trump, who would not commit to military action, according to a person briefed on the call.
One official who spoke to CNN said that the U.S. attack came in response to Iran firing at a U.S. aircraft. "This was a defensive measure for Iranians using surface-to-air missiles against U.S. assets," another U.S. official said.
The two regional officials said diplomatic efforts have made progress, with Qatari mediators trying to advance a framework under which Iran would cease attacks in the Strait of Hormuz in return for the U.S. lifting its blockade of Iranian ports.
More talks are planned this week, they said.
Other U.S. allies in the Middle East warned that more strikes could destabilize the region and lead Yemen’s Houthis to step up attacks on Saudi Arabia and Red Sea shipping, with Iran-backed militias in Iraq also possibly getting involved, a third regional official told AP.
Israeli officials assess the window for an attack on Iran is within the next two months, Israel’s Kan broadcaster reported, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin had spoken with a senior Iranian official to prevent war.
The U.S. attacked Qeshm Island on Monday in the latest of a series of limited strikes carried out without public announcement in recent weeks, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, citing U.S. officials.
"This was a defensive measure for Iranians using surface-to-air missiles against U.S. assets," a U.S. official said. An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) surface-to-air missile was fired at a U.S. fighter jet, which fired back, and U.S. forces separately intercepted an IRGC missile from Qeshm targeting commercial shipping, officials told the Journal.
Iran’s IRNA reported five explosions on the island.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they downed two U.S. drones south of Qeshm, according to Tasnim.
"We had a war with Iran. We won," Trump told reporters Monday. "I don’t know if you even call it a war because we haven’t been doing any fighting for months."
"We bombed out all of their potential nuclear power. Now we might have to go after Pickaxe (Mountain), but that’s not a big deal. We can do that in one hour," Trump told Fox News, adding there was "a very good chance we make a deal."
A deal "could happen," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Asked whether he was considering strikes after the midterms, Trump said "no," though officials said he was still weighing options, according to the WSJ.
"The president and I both feel pretty good about the prospects for potentially coming to a negotiated settlement," Vice President JD Vance said.
Oil prices fell more than 7% Monday on hopes of an end to the conflict.
The U.S. and Israel launched attacks against Iran on Feb. 28. Tehran retaliated against Israel and U.S. targets in the region before a ceasefire was reached in April.
The U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on freedom of navigation in the strait on June 18, but implementation stalled over disagreements concerning security arrangements.
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