Netanyahu to present Trump with new Iran attack plans during US visit — report

Jerusalem concerned Tehran could rebuild nuclear program, but primarily worried about potential surge in ballistic missile production to some 3,000 a month, according to NBC

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will present plans for a possible fresh attack on Iran to US President Donald Trump during his upcoming visit to Washington, NBC News reported Saturday, citing several unnamed officials.

According to the report, Israel is growing increasingly concerned that Iran is rebuilding and even expanding its ballistic missile production in the wake of the nations’ 12-day war in June.

Israel is also worried that Iran is rebuilding its nuclear enrichment program, which was heavily damaged by Israeli and American strikes, the report added.

Netanyahu and Trump are expected to meet at the US president’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida at the end of the month.

While Israel has publicly called Iran’s nuclear program an existential threat, officials quoted in the report said that the ballistic missiles were seen by Jerusalem as a more pressing concern.

“The nuclear weapons program is very concerning. There’s an attempt to reconstitute. [But] it’s not that immediate,” a source with knowledge of Israel’s plans told NBC News.

“The threat of the missiles is very real, and we weren’t able to prevent them all last time,” another source said.

A source with knowledge on the matter, as well as former US officials, told NBC that Jerusalem believes Iran’s renewed production of ballistic missiles could increase to 3,000 per month if left unchecked.

Such an arsenal, in addition to threatening Israel, could serve as a deterrent against Israeli action to act against the Islamic Republic’s proxies in the region, or against its nuclear program.

Israel launched its war against Iran in June, targeting the Islamic Republic’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and citing an imminent existential threat to the Jewish state.

Over 12 days, successive waves of airstrikes killed Iranian nuclear scientists, took out much of the supply and production capacity for the missile program, and damaged uranium enrichment sites, with the US joining in the last days to take out underground nuclear facilities that only heavy bunker-buster bombs could penetrate.

Iran said over 1,000 people were killed by Israeli strikes in the war. It retaliated by launching over 500 ballistic missiles and around 1,100 drones at Israel, which killed 32 people and wounded over 3,000 in Israel, according to health officials and hospitals.

In all, Israel suffered 36 missile impacts and one drone strike in populated areas, causing damage to 2,305 homes in 240 buildings, along with two universities and a hospital, and leaving over 13,000 Israelis displaced.

The Washington Post reported this week that Netanyahu and Trump had discussed a potential strike on Iran’s nuclear program as early as February, during their first meeting after the US president’s return to office. Israel and the US coordinated plans throughout the following months, including while Trump held talks with Iran in an effort to resolve the nuclear issue peacefully, The Post said.

During the February meeting, Netanyahu presented Trump with four options on what an attack on Iran could look like, according to the report. The four scenarios were an exclusively Israeli attack, an attack led by Israel with minimal US help, full collaboration, and a US-led assault.

According to the NBC report Saturday, citing a person with direct knowledge of Israel’s plans, Netanyahu may present a similar set of options to Trump in Florida when the two meet.

Israeli officials are concerned that Iran, leaning on its missile program as a deterrent, could fast-track an effort to reconstitute its nuclear program, NBC reported.

Israel declined to comment on the report, as did the Iranian mission to the UN.

Responding to NBC, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said: “As President Trump has said, if Iran pursued a nuclear weapon, that site would be attacked and would be wiped out before they even got close.”

Trump has insisted that Iran’s nuclear program was “obliterated” by the US strikes. Other assessments, including those by American and Israeli intelligence agencies, have been more cautious, estimating that the program was set back years or even just months, rather than destroyed entirely.

David Barnea, the outgoing head of Israel’s Mossad spy agency, said on Tuesday that Israel must “ensure” Iran doesn’t restart its nuclear program, saying the Islamic Republic “will break out as soon as it is allowed.”

“The idea of continuing to develop a nuclear bomb still beats in their hearts. We bear responsibility to ensure that the nuclear project, which has been gravely damaged, in close cooperation with the Americans, will never be activated,” he said.

Iran, which regularly calls for the destruction of Israel, has consistently denied seeking to acquire nuclear weapons. However, it has enriched uranium to levels that have no peaceful application, obstructed international inspectors from checking its nuclear facilities, and expanded its ballistic missile capabilities. When the war began, Israel said Iran had recently taken steps toward weaponization.