Trump administration officials on Monday asked their Israeli counterparts not to continue bombing Iran’s energy infrastructure, Axios reported on Tuesday.
It is the latest indication that the U.S. and Israel have different aims in the war they jointly started 10 days ago. The U.S. request comes after Israel bombed Iranian oil facilities that created clouds of black smoke above Tehran.
The Axios report cited three sources familiar with the situation. It said the Trump administration pointed to three reasons why it does not want Israel to continue its attacks on Iran’s energy industry:
The Trump administration cited three reasons for its request, according to a source with knowledge of the matter:
Such strikes harm the Iranian public, a large portion of which opposes the regime.
Trump aims to cooperate with Iran’s oil sector after the war — similar to the approach he has taken with Venezuela.
The strikes could trigger massive Iranian retaliatory attacks on energy infrastructure across Gulf states.
Hours later, The Wall Street Journal reported that even though President Donald Trump has claimed the war is just about over, “Israel has other ideas.”
“There is some concern among White House officials that Israel wants the war to last after the U.S. expresses its desire to end the bombing campaign, the officials said,” the Journal said on Tuesday. “U.S. and Israeli officials say the Israeli message is it will stop its campaign in Iran whenever U.S. involvement stops.”
The Journal noted that U.S. strikes have largely targeted the Iranian military, while Israel’s bombings have homed in on Iranian leaders and its energy facilities.
Over the years, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly urged the U.S. to act against Iran.
More than 1,000 Iranians have been killed in the bombings, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and dozens of top officials. An elementary school was hit in southern Iran, killing at least 175 people, mostly children. Trump administration officials reportedly believe the U.S. was responsible, though so far the president denies it. Seven Americans have been killed by Iranian retaliatory strikes.
Credit: Yahoo News