Biden Holds Phone Call With Netanyahu On Iran Strike Plans After Gallant Trip Blocked

President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are holding a crucial phone call Wednesday morning focused on Israel’s plans to strike back at Iran for the Oct.1st ballistic missile attack, which saw some 200 warheads launched, many of which hit targets on the ground including key airbases.

It marks the first call since Iran’s attack, and also the first between the leaders in two months, and comes as Washington has signaled it is deeply worried that a bigger regional war could break out if Israel’s retaliation goes too far. The call is scheduled for 10:30ET. NBC is reporting that Vice President Kamala Harris will join the call.

The call comes amid some internal Israeli drama, given the open spat between Netanyahu and his Defense Minister. Netanyahu has forced Gallant to cancel a planned trip to Washington. It was set for Wednesday, and he was to meet with counterparts in the Pentagon about “ongoing Middle East security developments,” a Pentagon statement had indicated.

“An Israeli official, who asked not to be identified discussing the decision, cited last-minute objections to the trip by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,” Bloomberg confirms.

“Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who has sparred with Netanyahu about the conduct of the yearlong war in Gaza and on other fronts, had been due to fly to Washington for talks,” the report adds.

And Axios has filled in some further details as follows:

• Netanyahu told Gallant his trip wouldn’t be approved he had received a call from Biden and the Israeli security cabinet had approved the attack plans.
• The Biden-Netanyahu call was already scheduled before the flare-up between Netanyahu and Gallant, according to a source familiar with the issue.

As it stands, Biden is opposing both Israeli potential plans to strike nuclear facilities, and also energy sites such as oil and gas depots.

“A Netanyahu aide told Axios that once a decision was made, Netanyahu would want to brief Biden,” Axios noted. Is the Wednesday call all about Bibi getting a final go ahead from the White House?

The White House is said to be frustrated over lack of Israeli information-sharing on the planned attack. Times of Israel in fresh coverage specifically cites “growing frustration in Washington over Jerusalem’s unwillingness to share details of its intentions.” The US also reportedly learned of the Nasrallah assassination plans only after the fact of his death:

The lack of communication led to a blunt exchange between US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant when Gallant phoned his counterpart on September 27 to inform him of the strike on Nasrallah after the fact.

“Excuse me, what did you say?” Austin reportedly asked Gallant. In a second phone call that same day, Austin asked his Israeli counterpart if Jerusalem was ready to defend itself on its own, as the US hadn’t had time to deploy its forces to deflect any immediate reprisal, the report said.

Should Israel want to use heavy US-supplied bombs in the attack, it would need to seek Washington’s blessing. But a US official has said, “We want to use the call to try and shape the limitations of the Israeli retaliation.”

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu refuses to approve Defense Minister Yoav Galant’s trip to Washington planned for tonight until a he gets a phone call with President Biden and until the Israeli cabinet approves the response to Iran’s missile attack, according to a source…

— Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) October 8, 2024

Should conflict spiral across the region, US forces in Iraq and Syria would likely feel the brunt of the retaliation of Iran and its proxies in the region. Iraqi paramilitaries have already vowed to hit US positions hard in the scenario of Israeli escalation. The US is widely seen as supporting Israel hand-and-glove.

Already there’s nearly a full-scale war in Lebanon, and Israel has stepped up its strikes against Syria, last week also reportedly coming close to hitting a major Russian airbase on Syria’s coast. Bibi certainly looks in a mood to fight, and is likely indeed preparing to hit the Islamic Republic hard.