• Defence minister rules out pre-election strike on Tehran; Israeli premier dismisses reports of clash with army chief • Netanyahu pushed Trump to launch attack before Israel polls, CNN reports

JERUSALEM: Israeli Defe­nce Minister Israel Katz on Monday ruled out an attack on Iran before the election, dismissing reports of an “unprecedented confrontation” between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and army chief Eyal Zamir over Iran.

The reports originated on Sunday, when Israel’s Channel 12 reported the two men clashed over an unspecified directive concerning Iran ahead of Tues­day’s closely contested vote.

Zamir demanded legal guarantees and political leaders’ signatures before executing the order, amid fears that military action could provoke immediate confrontation with Tehran.

Netanyahu dismissed the report as “rubbish”, while Katz went further, saying that claims of gaps between the political leadership and the military were “entirely baseless and false”.

He characterised it as an eff­ort to cast doubt on the Netan­yahu bloc’s judgement on the eve of the polls saying “unequivocally that there was no intention on Israel’s part to initiate an attack on Iran before the elections”.

The denials came as CNN published a report casting the issue in a very different light.

Citing two US officials, the network said American forces in the Middle East were prepared to launch new, potentially major operations against Iran within 96 hours of receiving an order from Donald Trump.

According to the report, Neta­n­yahu had in fact been pushing for further strikes, while US officials urged Israel to wait until Washington was ready for joint action. “Netanyahu really wanted and tried to convince Trump for a joint attack in Iran before the elections, and Trump did not give a green light,” an Israeli security source told CNN.

Officials said an order could come before the end of the year, most likely after the US midterm elections on Nov. 3. Israel delayed immediate strike plans but is preparing for possible joint operations with the US after the midterms, CNN reported.

In Israel, the reports fed into an already heated campaign. Opposition figures accused Netanyahu of risking a wider conflict with Iran for political gain. Gadi Eisenkot, a former army chief and Netanyahu’s principal rival, warned against drawing the military into electoral politics.

“I warn Netanyahu: do not dare place your political interests above the state’s security,” he wrote on X.

Avigdor Lieberman, another opposition politician, went a step further, saying he had asked the attorney general to investigate allegations that Netanyahu pressured security officials into actions that could provoke Iran.

Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2026