Israel's Cabinet delays vote on timing and objectives of planned attack against Iran
Shafaq News/ Israel's Security Cabinet has delayed the vote on the timing and objectives of a planned attack on Iran, Israeli media reported on Friday.
"The Cabinet did not reach a concrete decision regarding the attack on Iran during the overnight discussions on Thursday," the Israeli Broadcasting Authority stated.
The Ynetnews site also mentioned, "The Cabinet discussed the strike but refrained from making any decisions," explaining that it "deliberated for almost four hours, including discussions on the planned Israeli response to Iran."
“According to reports, the Cabinet was expected to vote on a response to the Iranian missile attack, but no vote occurred, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant were not authorized to decide on the matter," it added.
The Israeli news website further indicated that “the objective is to delay the vote and approval until just before the attack to preserve the element of surprise,” explaining, "The postponement will result in a delay of Gallant's trip to the United States.”
Netanyahu previously conditioned Gallant's US visit on his own conversation with President Joe Biden and the Cabinet's approval of a response plan against Iran. Gallant’s office later confirmed the postponement of his trip at Netanyahu's request.
A few days ago, the Cabinet approved a response to the Iranian attack, but the timing and targets are still under discussion.
On October 1, Iran launched an attack with around 180 missiles in retaliation for the assassinations of former Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, IRGC commander Abbas Nilforoushan, and Israeli massacres in Gaza and Lebanon.
The following day, the Israeli army acknowledged damage to some of its airbases, stating that “preparations for a major retaliatory response against Tehran are underway,” while emphasizing that Israel would not act without delivering a "significant and severe" response.
Iran justified its attack under Article 51 of the UN Charter, which allows “member states to use force in self-defense in the event of an armed attack against them.”
