Among all the messages that came through in President Donald Trump's address to the Knesset, Israel has particular reason to be concerned about his remarks regarding Iran.
As expected, the louder the echoes of the massive success of Operation Midnight Hammer, the strike in which the nuclear facilities in Fordo and Natanz were supposedly "completely destroyed" by heavy bombs dropped from B-2 bombers, the more convinced Trump seems that Iran cannot restart its program.
According to Trump, several sources have already approached him, claiming that Iran is rebuilding its nuclear program, but he simply did not believe them. "Someone told me: 'Mr. President, they're starting up their nuclear program again.' I told him: Listen carefully. They're not starting anything. They want to survive. The last thing they want is to start digging holes again in the mountains that were just bombed," Trump said.
However, recently published satellite images indicate that Iran is not only rebuilding but also testing activity at a new site south of Natanz. The facility, known as "Mount Mattock," is located about one kilometer south of the Natanz enrichment site and has been dug deep into the mountain, even deeper than Fordo.
Deep divisions
It is evident that Trump is pursuing an agreement with Iran contrary to Israel's stance. Official Israel may take some comfort in the fact that there are major differences, especially regarding the US administration's view that Iran is weak and can therefore be forced into unprecedented concessions. But that perception does not align with Iran's position, as Tehran may be willing to make concessions, though certainly not of the scale Washington expects. In any case, it can be assumed that efforts to renew negotiations between the sides will resume soon.
Against the backdrop of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's comment — "We're on it" — it seems there may be a widening gap between how the two sides currently view the Iranian issue, one that could deepen further if Iran expands its reconstruction efforts or if the US returns to the diplomatic track with Iran.
The question arises as to who is briefing Trump about Iran, since the claim that Iran was "two months away from a bomb" does not even align with Netanyahu's own statement in an interview with Fox News, where he said Iran was a year away from developing such a weapon. In any case, with the ceasefire in Gaza now in effect, the Iranian issue has returned to the forefront, and in a big way.
