Months before President Donald Trump began diplomatic efforts to resolve nuclear tensions with Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had already set Israel on a collision course toward war with Tehran, according to current and former Israeli officials who spoke with The Washington Post.
Following Israel’s decisive air defense strikes in October that crippled Iran’s allies Hezbollah and degraded Iranian defenses across Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq, Netanyahu issued orders to prepare for a full-scale military strike on Iran itself. Israeli intelligence began compiling extensive lists targeting Iranian nuclear scientists and military leaders for assassination, while the Israeli Air Force systematically dismantled air defenses to clear a path for future bombing runs.
Despite these preparations, Israeli officials simultaneously sought to bring Washington into the operation, believing that U.S. military participation would be more effective than unilateral action. This pursuit paid off when, in mid-June, President Trump authorized U.S. forces, including B-2 bombers and Tomahawk missiles, to strike Iran’s nuclear sites—targets Israel had long identified as critical.
The Post’s reporting reveals that Netanyahu’s decision to strike was not driven by new intelligence indicating an immediate Iranian nuclear threat. Rather, it was a calculated move born of months, even years, of strategic planning to exploit what Israeli officials described as a unique moment of Iranian weakness and Israeli military readiness. Israeli sources told The Post that by March—weeks before Netanyahu’s April Oval Office meeting with Trump—the prime minister had decided to act by June, with or without American involvement, to prevent Iran from rebuilding its air defenses and nuclear capabilities.
The question of whether Netanyahu possessed conclusive proof of an imminent Iranian nuclear weapon has sparked intense debate worldwide and raised complex questions about the legality of Israel’s strike. While Israeli intelligence believed Iranian scientists were renewing research into nuclear weaponization, U.S. intelligence agencies maintained there was no evidence that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had authorized construction of a bomb.
Inside Israel, the decision was largely supported across political and security circles, reflecting the longstanding “Begin Doctrine” that endorses preemptive strikes to prevent regional nuclear threats. Yet critics within Israel cautioned that Netanyahu’s choice to strike during ongoing U.S. diplomacy risked escalating conflict without sufficient evidence and closed the door on potential political solutions.
The Washington Post’s investigation further details how Israeli intelligence meticulously tracked Iranian nuclear scientists and military officials for assassination, utilizing Mossad agents embedded within Iran’s nuclear facilities and deploying covert drone and missile technologies. By the time the strikes began, Israeli pilots had honed the ability to carry out dozens of simultaneous precision attacks—a capability that was crucial to the operation’s surprise and impact.
Since the June 13 offensive, Israeli and U.S. strikes have reportedly killed at least ten key Iranian nuclear scientists and delivered severe blows to Iran’s nuclear and missile programs. Netanyahu has emphasized that his orders were clear: eliminate the scientists and cripple Iran’s ability to advance toward a bomb.
The Post’s report underscores the complex interplay of intelligence, diplomacy, and military strategy shaping the conflict, highlighting how Netanyahu’s long-anticipated strike has thrust the region into a new phase of uncertainty—one where covert operations, targeted assassinations, and great power politics collide.
