Major Israeli attack on the Islamic Republic halted by Trump's opposition

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, had ordered the country's military to prepare a large, multi-day air attack on the Islamic Republic for the weekend of 10 October 2026, but the operation was shelved after opposition from Donald Trump, the President of the United States. These details were revealed by three sources familiar with the plans in conversation with the Financial Times and published on Wednesday, 21 October.

According to these sources, the operation's target list included nuclear facilities, power plants, other infrastructure and regime-affiliated centres, and it was meant to be more intense than the joint US-Israeli campaign of last February and March. The main reason given for halting it was Trump's opposition to resuming the war before the US midterm elections on 3 November, out of concern over the effect of an escalation on the economy and energy prices.

A new target list and Pete Hegseth's trip

According to the same report, Israeli officials have in recent days given their US counterparts an updated target list, based on new intelligence, that includes infrastructure not hit in the previous round of the war. Meanwhile, Pete Hegseth, the US Secretary of War, met Netanyahu during an unannounced visit to Israel on Monday, 19 October. It is not clear whether the United States would have taken part in the operation of 10 October. One of the sources said the military preparations were also part of the pressure on Tehran during the negotiations and that the final decision rests with Trump.

Another source said a new round of strikes in the coming weeks, whether by Israel alone or together with the United States, remains realistic; in his words, it is either a deal or an attack.

Reaction of the White House and Netanyahu's office

Anna Kelly, deputy White House press secretary, said the Islamic Republic is in a very bad economic and military situation and that the US blockade of its ports has worked. She stressed again that the United States will not attack the Islamic Republic before the midterm elections. The Israeli Prime Minister's office did not respond to requests for comment, and the Israeli military declined to comment.

Israel's election and the future of the war

Israel's parliamentary election will be held on 27 October. Trump openly backed Netanyahu's candidacy last Sunday and said that if another leader came to power in Israel, the United States would have to finish the job on the Islamic Republic itself. Netanyahu had earlier said he has ordered all of Israel's security agencies to work to topple the Islamic Republic. Eyal Zamir, the Israeli chief of staff, has cancelled military leave from Thursday until the end of election day.

According to three informed sources, only Trump's opposition ahead of the US election stopped an attack on the Islamic Republic heavier than the war of February and March.