Pete Hegseth made unannounced visit to Israel, met Netanyahu ahead of elections - report | LIVE BLOG
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel on Monday during an unannounced visit, two sources with knowledge of the meeting told Axios
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone with US President Donald Trump after the president endorsed him in the upcoming Israeli elections. “Donald, we have a job to finish. You said it, and we’ll finish it together,” Netanyahu said. Trump replied, “We’ll finish it, and nobody else will do it,” adding, “You’re a fighter… And I think you’re terrific, Bibi. I think you’ll win a huge victory, actually.”
Meanwhile, in the West Bank, Palestinians threw stones through the car of an Israeli politician during a public diplomacy tour in the Binyamin region. Public diplomacy activist Fleur Hassan-Nahoum—number 5 on the 'Amcha Israel' party list—and Palestinians attacked her team during a public diplomacy tour. They began throwing large stones at the car and through its window as Hassan-Nahoum’s car drove past. READ MORE FROM MONDAY
Iran escalating attacks on Hormuz shipping to pressure Trump before midterms; officials say Tehran expects less sensitivity to oil prices afterward - report
Iran is stepping up attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz ahead of the November 3 midterms, expecting President Donald Trump to be less sensitive to high energy prices after the midterms, according to Iranian officials and diplomats in the region who spoke with the Washington Post.
A Western official said Iranian attacks averaged around 30 a week in September, and UK Maritime Trade Operations says Iran has attacked more than 20 vessels so far this month, one of which sank.
Iran’s national security adviser, Mohsen Rezaei, said Iran is targeting “five or six” vessels every night, even as US forces escorting traffic through the strait have pushed oil exports close to prewar averages on several days.
An Arab diplomat and a Western diplomat said some Iranian officials want to “punish” Trump in the midterms, much as the hostage crisis hurt President Jimmy Carter’s 1980 reelection bid.
“They’re obsessed,” the Arab diplomat said. “They think they can bring down a presidency.”
Hegseth made unannounced visit to Israel, met Netanyahu at Ovda Air Base; trip came eight days before Israeli election - report
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel on Monday during an unannounced visit, two sources with knowledge of the meeting told Axios.
The meeting took place at Ovda Air Base in southern Israel, where US refueling planes and fighter jets are deployed, the sources said, and Hegseth also met US troops at the base.
The visit came eight days before Israel’s election, and amid US-Israeli discussions about potentially resuming major combat operations against Iran, Axios reported.
Hegseth later posted an image of himself visiting US Central Command troops.
https://x.com/i/web/status/2112346650094239820
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