Trump opposed Netanyahu's plans for renewed strikes on Iran ahead of US midterms - report

The Israeli military prepared for an extensive, multi-day operation during the weekend of October 10 that would have targeted regime targets, nuclear facilities, and civilian infrastructure, according to the Jerusalem Post. The Financial Times reports that the military held off on these plans because Donald Trump ruled out an attack before the US midterm elections.

During a campaign rally in North Carolina, Trump stated that Iran has a "dream" for the war to continue beyond the November midterm elections, though he claimed the conflict would end very quickly. Trump noted that oil prices would drop significantly once the war ends and added that rising energy prices are a small price to pay to prevent a nuclear weapon from reaching a state sponsor of terror.

In a separate development, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth conducted an unannounced visit to Israel, where he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Uvda air force base. A spokesperson for the Prime Minister, Doron Spielman, confirmed the meeting involved discussions regarding regional threats, the US-Israel partnership, and President Trump’s support for Netanyahu.

While Hegseth posted about visiting US service members in the Central Command area, the Pentagon has not issued a public comment regarding the visit.

Brief written by urgent.news from Jerusalem Post, Financial Times, Middle East Eye, Dawn — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.