'Tough' Trump-Netanyahu call reveals disagreement over Iran war

New details have emerged regarding Saturday's telephone conversation between US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with Axios reporting on Sunday that the two leaders discussed disagreements over the timing of renewed military operations against Iran. The Wall Street Journal first reported the conversation on Saturday but did not disclose its contents. According to Axios , which cited an Israeli source and an American source, Netanyahu has been pressing Trump to launch another military offensive against Iran immediately following Tuesday's US midterm elections.

Trump, however, is currently inclined to continue diplomatic efforts before deciding whether to resume major combat operations, a position that has reportedly caused concern in Jerusalem. The Israeli source described the conversation as "tough," while the American source characterized it as "direct." The White House and the Prime Minister's Office declined to comment. The new details come after reports that Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), personally briefed Trump at the White House on Thursday regarding possible military operations against Iran.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine also attended the briefing. According to Axios , the Trump administration is pursuing parallel diplomatic and military preparations, an approach previously employed ahead of Operation Midnight Hammer in June 2025 and Operation Epic Fury in February 2026. Last week, Vice President JD Vance sent a letter to Iranian national security chief Mohsen Rezaei addressing the possibility of resuming negotiations.

The communication marked the highest-level American outreach to Tehran in several months. On Saturday, Trump told reporters that negotiations with Iran were "going fine" and that he was not "in much of a hurry" to reach an agreement. However, he also questioned whether Tehran could be trusted to fulfill its commitments, saying the Iranians "are not very reliable. ... They make a deal, and then they back out." The President further indicated that the US could still target additional Iranian nuclear facilities, including a suspected underground installation known as Pickaxe Mountain.

"We can do that in 10 minutes. We have that planned. You can look at Pickaxe Mountain. We need to take care of that. We can do that very quickly," Trump said. Meanwhile, Qatari mediators met with Iranian officials on Sunday for the third consecutive day as part of efforts to arrange the resumption of direct negotiations between Washington and Tehran. The diplomatic activity follows earlier reports of progress in talks held in Qatar, including preliminary understandings concerning Iran's nuclear program, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and possible economic incentives for Tehran.

Nevertheless, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that no agreement had been reached and that further progress depended on the US responding to questions raised by Iran. "We are making every effort in this regard and hope that the other side will demonstrate enough rationality to choose diplomacy over other paths," Araghchi said.