WASHINGTON — Israeli officials have grown increasingly concerned that Iran is expanding production of its ballistic missile program, which was damaged by Israeli military strikes earlier this year, and are preparing to brief President Donald Trump about options for attacking it again, according to a person with direct knowledge of the plans and four former U.S. officials briefed on the plans.
Israeli officials also are concerned that Iran is reconstituting nuclear enrichment sites the U.S. bombed in June, the sources said. But, they added, the officials view Iran’s efforts to rebuild facilities where they produce the ballistic missiles and to repair its crippled air defense systems as more immediate concerns.
Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to meet later this month in Florida at the president’s Mar a Lago estate. At that meeting, the sources said, Netanyahu is expected to make the case to Trump that Iran’s expansion of its ballistic missile program poses a threat that could necessitate swift action.
They said part of his argument is expected to be that Iran’s actions present perils not only to Israel but also to the broader region, including U.S. interests. The Israeli leader is expected to present Trump with options for the U.S. to join or assist in any new military operations, the sources said.
Asked Thursday about a Dec. 29 meeting with Netanyahu, Trump told reporters, “We haven’t set it up formally, but he’d like to see me.” Israeli officials have announced a Dec. 29 meeting.
The Israeli government declined to comment. The Iranian Mission at the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment.
“The International Atomic Energy Agency and Iranian government corroborated the United States government’s assessment that Operation Midnight Hammer totally obliterated Iran’s nuclear capabilities,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement. “As President Trump has said, if Iran pursued a nuclear weapon, that site would be attacked and would be wiped out before they even got close.”
Israel’s plans to brief Trump on — and give him the option to join — possible additional military strikes in Iran come as the president is considering military strikes in Venezuela, which would open a new warfront for the U.S., and as he is touting his administration’s bombing campaign against Iran’s nuclear program and success negotiating a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
In an address to the nation on Wednesday, Trump said told Americans he’s “destroyed the Iran nuclear threat and ended the war in Gaza, bringing for the first time in 3,000 years, peace to the Middle East.”
The Israeli concerns about Iran come as Tehran has expressed interest in resuming diplomatic talks with the U.S. aimed at curtailing its nuclear deal, which could potentially complicate Israel’s approaching Trump about new strikes.
The funding of Iranian proxies in the region also is top of mind for the Israelis, according to the person with direct knowledge of Israel’s plans.
“The nuclear weapons program is very concerning. There’s an attempt to reconstitute. It’s not that immediate,” this person said.
The strikes the U.S. conducted in June against Iran, known as Operation Midnight Hammer, included more than 100 aircraft, a submarine and seven B-2 bombers. Trump has said they “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites, though some early assessments indicated the damage may not have been as extensive as the president has said.
Israeli forces at the same time struck several of Iran’s ballistic missile sites.
Israeli military strikes in April and October 2024 also damaged all of Iran’s S-300 air defense systems, the most advanced system the country operates, clearing the way for manned flights into Iranian airspace months later by dramatically reducing the threat to pilots.
Unlike strikes on Iran’s ballistic missile program, direct U.S. military involvement was needed to significantly damage Iran’s nuclear sites as that required American-made 30,000-pound bunker-busting bombs.
Last week, Trump hinted he might be open to returning to talks with Iran, while also warning Tehran against trying to reconstitute its ballistic missile or nuclear programs.
He said Iran “can try” to rebuild its ballistic missile program, but “it’s going to take them a long time to come back.”
“But if they do want to come back without a deal, then we’re going to obliterate that one, too,” Trump said. “You know, we can knock out their missiles very quickly, we have great power.”
Prior to the strikes in June, the Israelis had presented Trump with four options for military action, according to the person with direct knowledge of Israel’s plans. Israeli officials laid out the options on a coffee table in the Oval Office, this person said. One involved Israel going it alone, another included limited U.S. support, a third was the U.S. and Israel conducting joint operations against Iran, and a fourth had the U.S. conducting the operation on its own, this person said. Ultimately Trump decided to approve a joint operation. The person with direct knowledge of Israel’s plans suggested Netanyahu may present Trump with a similar set of options during their Mar-a-Lago meeting.
The fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas is also expected to feature prominently in the talks between Netanyahu and Trump, amid concerns both sides are failing to take action to carry out the next phase of the deal.
Under the second stage of the agreement, Israel is supposed to withdraw its forces from Gaza, and an interim body is to assume authority over the Palestinian enclave instead of Hamas. An international stabilization force also is supposed to be deployed to Gaza.
Trump could be less enthusiastic about new military action in Iran if there continues to be friction between U.S. and Israeli officials over Netanyahu’s approach to the ceasefire, two former Israeli officials said.
Left unchecked, Iran’s production of ballistic missiles could increase to as many as 3,000 per month, according to the person with direct knowledge of Israel’s plans and former U.S. officials briefed on the plans.
The threat of ballistic missiles, and the number of them that the Iranians could use in an attack, is Israel’s most immediate concern, said one of the former Israeli officials who has discussed the concerns with current Israeli officials.
“There is no real question after the last conflict that we can gain aerial superiority and can do far more damage to Iran than Iran can do to Israel,” the official said. “But the threat of the missiles is very real, and we weren’t able to prevent them all last time.”
A large volume of ballistic missiles would help Iran better defend its nuclear enrichment sites, the person with direct knowledge of Israel’s plans and one of the former U.S. officials briefed on the plans said. They said Israeli officials have the same concerns about Iran rebuilding its missile defense systems and funding and arming its proxies in the region, believing Tehran would then fast track reconstituting its nuclear program because it would better be able to defend its enrichment sites.
