Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed for a new airstrike against the Islamic Republic in the weeks leading up to the election, but Army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, three senior Israeli security officials and three people familiar with the matter said. Netanyahu's reason for pushing for a strike before the election was unclear, but a return to war could disrupt or even delay the vote. Zamir concluded that there was no immediate need for action; An assessment that made it difficult to describe the timing of the attack as a military necessity. In principle, he was not against taking action against the Islamic Republic, but he was against doing so before the election. In recent days, Bazimir also raised the fact that Netanyahu is pushing for action at a lower level than an open attack. The nature of this action has not been determined, but Zamir believed it might provoke the Islamic Republic to attack Israel. The IDF said that its operational decisions were made solely based on "security considerations". Netanyahu's office did not respond.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed for a new airstrike against the Islamic Republic in the weeks leading up to the election, but Army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, three senior Israeli security officials and three people familiar with the matter said. Netanyahu's reason for pushing for a strike before the election was unclear, but a return to war could disrupt or even delay the vote. Zamir concluded that there was no immediate need for action; An assessment that made it difficult to describe the timing of the attack as a military necessity. In principle, he was not against taking action against the Islamic Republic, but he was against doing so before the election. In recent days, Bazimir also raised the fact that Netanyahu is pushing for action at a lower level than an open attack. The nature of this action has not been determined, but Zamir believed it might provoke the Islamic Republic to attack Israel. The IDF said that its operational decisions were made solely based on "security considerations". Netanyahu's office did not respond.