Benjamin Netanyahu sought a pre-election airstrike on Iran despite military resistance
The New York Times reported Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought for weeks to arrange an airstrike on Iran before Tuesday’s election, but military chief of staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir resisted. It said Netanyahu also pressed for a separate, unspecified action short of an overt strike, which Zamir feared could provoke Iran to attack. Netanyahu called the report “fake news.”
More context
The New York Times reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spent weeks trying to orchestrate a new airstrike on Iran before Israel’s Tuesday election, but met resistance from the military’s chief of staff. In recent days, Netanyahu also pushed for a separate action against Iran that would stop short of an overt strike, according to an Israeli official and a person briefed on the matter; neither described what the action involved. Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the chief of staff, believed it would be a miscalculation that could provoke Iran to attack Israel, the report said. Netanyahu dismissed the account as fabricated and said he had no intention of firing Zamir. Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel had no plans to strike Iran before the election.
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Reporting
- The New York Times — Netanyahu Pushed for Attack on Iran Ahead of Israeli Election, Officials Say - The New York Times
- YouTube — Netanyahu Pushed for Iran Strike Before Israel Election? NYT Report, PM Says ‘Fake News’ | News18
- NDTV — Benjamin Netanyahu Pushed For Attack On Iran Ahead Of Israeli Election: Report
- Facebook — Benjamin Netanyahu pushed for an attack on Iran ahead ...
- The Times of Israel — Netanyahu pushed for Iran strike before election but Trump refused, CNN says
- Haaretz — Mossad Officials Clash With Spy Agency Chief Over Netanyahu-Backed Pre-Election Operation in Iran - Israel Security
- The Guardian — Netanyahu reportedly pressured military to attack Iran in ...
Verifier’s note
The New York Times reports that Netanyahu pressed for action against Iran before the election, and Haaretz and The Guardian also report pre-election pressure for action. News18, NDTV, and the New York Times’ Facebook post echo the Times report, while The Times of Israel describes a related pre-election push and attributes it to CNN and other reporting.