US Defense Secretary Made Secret Visit to Israel, Met Netanyahu

U.S. Defense Secretary visited Israel secretly on Monday and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a report by journalist Barak Ravid on Channel 12, citing two sources familiar with the visit's details. The meeting between Netanyahu and the U.S. Secretary of War took place at a base in southern Israel and was also attended by senior officials from the United Arab Emirates. The meeting lasted over two hours.

The visit occurred without prior official announcement from the Pentagon, at a particularly sensitive time: just eight days before Knesset elections and while Israel and the United States are discussing the possibility of renewing military action against Iran.

The visit follows reports from last week that Netanyahu had spoken with U.S. President Donald Trump multiple times about the possibility of renewing strikes against Iran. According to Ravid's report, senior U.S. administration officials were under the impression that Netanyahu was interested in advancing further military action before the Israeli elections. Among the justifications presented by the Prime Minister, according to these sources, were new and worrying developments in Iran's nuclear activities.

One senior American official described Trump's message to Netanyahu as an agreement to continue preparations, but not a commitment to launch an attack. According to the official, the President told Netanyahu to proceed with preparations but did not promise a date or final approval for military action. The official added that the directive might be implemented soon, at a later date, or not at all.