President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly engaged in a tense private phone call over whether to resume military strikes against Iran, according to a report published Wednesday.
The conversation was described by Israel’s Channel 12 as “lengthy and dramatic” as divisions emerged between Trump and Netanyahu over the next phase of the conflict with Tehran.
According to the report, Netanyahu has become increasingly skeptical that negotiations with Iran will produce a lasting agreement and is pushing to restart military operations.
Trump, meanwhile, is reportedly pressing for a diplomatic arrangement that would force Iran to abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions before any additional military escalation.
The reported disagreement surfaced shortly after new claims emerged regarding an alleged U.S.-Israeli regime change strategy during the opening phase of the war.
According to a New York Times report cited in the article, Israel entered the conflict with Trump’s approval while pursuing what was described as an “audacious” plan to install former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iran’s new leader following the reported killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei during initial strikes.
The alleged operation reportedly collapsed almost immediately after Ahmadinejad was wounded during an Israeli strike targeting his Tehran residence. According to the report, the strike was intended to free him from house arrest, though Ahmadinejad subsequently disappeared from public view.
Ahmadinejad previously served as Iran’s president from 2005 through 2013 and became internationally known for hardline anti-Israel rhetoric, support for Iran’s nuclear program and crackdowns on dissent inside the country.
A source described as close to Ahmadinejad reportedly told the New York Times that the U.S. wanted the former Iranian leader to play “a very important role” in a post-war government.
The report also claimed Ahmadinejad initially believed the strike on his home was an attempt to liberate him from regime control. The attack reportedly killed members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard assigned to monitor him during house arrest.
However, after the operation failed and the broader regime-change effort stalled, Ahmadinejad allegedly cut off communication with Western intelligence services and became disillusioned with the plan.
The article further stated that Israeli strikes during the opening day of the war reportedly killed Khamenei and several senior Iranian officials, including figures the White House allegedly viewed as more open to negotiations with Washington.
Despite the reported regime-change discussions, Trump has publicly maintained that the conflict’s objectives are limited to dismantling Iran’s nuclear capabilities, ballistic missile systems and uranium enrichment infrastructure, per the Daily Mail.
The report argued that revelations surrounding the Ahmadinejad plan could undermine that public position by suggesting the US and Israel were also exploring political restructuring inside Iran.
According to the article, internal Trump administration officials had previously expressed skepticism about whether military action would successfully topple Tehran’s leadership.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe reportedly dismissed regime-change expectations as “farcical,” while Secretary of State Marco Rubio allegedly rejected similar assumptions during internal discussions.
