Analysts point out that Trump’s endorsement has been heavily focused on the Iran war, especially as the US president might be looking to restart attacks
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth held a secret meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during an unannounced visit to Israel this week, Axios reported, citing sources with knowledge. Neither Tel Aviv nor Washington has issued a statement about the reported meeting, which followed US President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Netanyahu for next week’s parliamentary election in Israel.
It’s the first vote in Israel since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, that shook the country and plunged the Middle East into turmoil, as Israel went to war in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran.
Opinion polls suggest that Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist coalition is likely to lose its governing majority, while the opposition may also struggle to form a government.
The Iran War Strategy?
Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East North Africa programme at the British think tank Chatham House, pointed out that Trump’s endorsement of Netanyahu, which comes after months of tension between the two leaders, is “politically significant.”
“It allows Netanyahu to reinforce his claim that he is indispensable to Israel’s relationship with Washington,” Vakil told Al Jazeera.
“However, its electoral impact should not be overstated. Israeli voters remain divided over Netanyahu’s leadership and the outcome of the Iran war. The endorsement may help consolidate his existing support, but it does not resolve the wider questions surrounding his record,” she added.
Andreas Krieg, senior lecturer at the school of security studies at King’s College London, described Trump’s endorsement as a “political gift” to Netanyahu, whose electoral campaign is struggling.
But he also cautioned against treating it as a game-changer. “Netanyahu’s problems are structural, involving fragmented right-wing parties, disillusioned ultra-Orthodox voters and the legacy of October 7. Trump may mobilise reluctant Likud voters, potentially worth a seat or two in a close contest, but he cannot manufacture the coalition majority Netanyahu currently lacks,” Krieg told Al Jazeera.
Analysts also point out that Trump’s endorsement has been heavily focused on the Iran war, especially as the US president might be looking to restart attacks, either before or after the midterm elections in early November. Several US media reports have suggested that the Pentagon might even be preparing to relaunch attacks before voters head to the polls.
Trump’s support for Netanyahu has signalled a renewed political alignment with Israel, with Vakil saying it could lead to future joint military action. She noted that it could make it “harder for Trump to distance himself from the war or portray the US as having been reluctantly drawn into it.”
“He is explicitly taking ownership of the partnership and its military campaign against Iran. However, the endorsement does not necessarily mean that the two leaders have agreed on another operation, nor does it settle the question of who initially pushed hardest for war,” she said.
Vakil added that for Tehran, the statement will reinforce the belief of Iranian leaders that there is “little meaningful distinction between US and Israeli objectives.”
“At the same time, Trump’s suggestion that he is reluctant to confront Iran without Netanyahu could be interpreted as evidence of the limits of Washington’s appetite for another war.”