Prime Minister Netanyahu is pressing President Donald Trump to quickly restart the joint US-Israeli war against Iran once this week’s US elections are over, the Financial Times reported on Monday.

During a phone call on Saturday, Prime Minister Netanyahu urged Trump to resume the fighting after Tuesday’s midterms, but the President has not yet decided. A US official confirmed that the two leaders spoke and that Prime Minister Netanyahu wants hostilities to resume, but said Trump is “not there yet.” One person familiar with the matter said: “The US is giving a last-ditch chance for diplomacy to succeed, and the Netanyahu government really doesn’t want to see an agreement — they want a military resolution to the Iran problem.”

Qatar is leading mediation efforts to reach an interim deal between Washington and Tehran. Iranian officials met with mediators in Doha over the weekend, after Qatari negotiators spent Friday in Tehran. Under the proposal, Iran would let ships pass freely through the Strait of Hormuz. In return, the US would lift its blockade on Iranian ports, allow Iran to export oil and give it access to some of its frozen assets abroad. The two sides would then return to talks on a final agreement.

Progress has been limited so far, with the sides at odds over the order of steps and over Iran’s 440-kilogram stockpile of highly enriched uranium. The US wants Iran to agree to a timetable for International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors to visit its main nuclear sites, where the stockpile is believed to be kept. Washington has also insisted that Iran hand over the uranium and ship it out of the country, which Iranian officials publicly reject. A person briefed on the mediation said both sides want a deal and are showing more flexibility, but it is still unclear whether the gaps can be closed.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that “if Iran’s demands are met, it would be possible to restore security to the Strait of Hormuz and start the negotiation process within a short period.” He added: “As far as we are concerned, the exchange of messages is still ongoing.” Iranian officials have also warned that any new attack would be met with a fierce response.

Meanwhile, an Israeli military official briefed on an early intelligence estimate said that recent intercepts and surveillance have led the IDF to believe the current round of talks could make enough progress to convince the US to hold off on strikes, at least for now. The official cautioned that the estimate is preliminary and will not be presented to the government until it is combined with other assessments ahead of official briefings.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)