U.S. President Donald Trump is delaying a decision on a military strike against Iran as the White House consults internally and with allies about the timing for such an operation, and whether it would meaningfully destabilize the Iranian regime, five unnamed U.S., Israeli and Arab sources told Axios on Jan. 15. Despite the backdown from immediate military action on Jan. 14, Axios stresses that the military option remains “firmly” on the table, but Trump’s decision to pause has exposed deep uncertainty—inside the administration and among allies—about the risks of a strike that punishes Iran while inviting major retaliation.
Even Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly asked Trump during a phone call on Jan. 14 to delay strikes on Iran. Netanyahu’s reason is purely pragmatic. Israel needs time to replenish its defenses that were severely depleted during last June’s 12-day war. An Israeli source also said that in addition to concerns about retaliation, the current U.S. plan includes strikes on security force targets in Iran, but is not seen by Israel as strong or effective enough to meaningfully destabilize the regime.
The Iranian leadership is not convinced by such reports that the danger has passed, recalling, as they do, last June’s all-out air attacks that came at the same time that Trump had stated he would wait at least two weeks.
