The Trump White House is reportedly looking to try and keep things 'quiet' related to the Iran war and Strait of Hormuz leading into the November midterms, after an intense flare-up in fighting this week.
"Top aides to President Donald Trump are pushing to keep the Iran war from escalating before November's midterm elections to staunch Republican electoral losses, four people familiar with the discussions said, a strategy already under strain as the U.S. and Iran exchanged back-and-forth attacks overnight," Reuters reports.
However, over in Israel the war rhetoric is still cranked to a ten. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it crystal clear in fresh Thursday remarks that total 'regime collapse' remains his 'central' goal.
He declared that the "central mission" is to topple the Iranian regime, asserting that the goal is "within reach," during a Rosh Hashanah event attended by the IDF General Staff Forum in Tel Aviv.
"The regime is now faltering. It is weaker than ever. It is fighting for its survival," he claimed. He also described this was partly due to Israel's successful Gaza campaign going back to Oct.7, 2023, and the anti-Hezbollah mission.
"I am confident in our ability to remove this threat once and for all – in other words, to topple this regime," Netanyahu said.
"That is the central mission that still lies ahead of us, but it is close. It is not impossible. It is within reach," he emphasized.
"It is no coincidence that they are not attacking us. They are attacking everyone except us. They know our strength, the force of our blows and our determination," he continued.
Israel's defense ministry has lately made clear it will unleash militarily on Iran if the Islamic Republic dares to attack Israel, even if it's some kind of 'limited' assault on Israeli assets and interests.
Netanyahu also warned, "Don’t mess with us. If you have learned anything, don’t mess with us. We have the strength, the determination and the internal unity to defeat you."
But Israel clearly wants the United States to continue to do the heavy lifting. Typically its leadership gets louder in making the case for anti-Tehran escalation anytime Washington seems to back off the military pressure.
And so it's no coincidence that this week...
Israeli officials have all the while continued to tout that Mossad assets have been in place inside the Islamic Republic, hinting that some kind of 'uprising' could take place.
And yet after six months of war, there really hasn't been much in the way of a groundswell of protest action in the streets. It remains a martial law situation, and the fact that the Iranian population itself is under the US bombs has naturally translated into citizens not wanting to be seen rooting for the enemy. The whole war-time situation also essentially grants authorities more 'power' to crack down, as it typically goes.