In the early Friday morning hours, Israel launched a series of strikes on Iran, targeting nuclear facilities, defense operations, and the leadership of the Revolutionary Guard.
Hours later, I sat down live with Michael Oren, the former Israeli ambassador to the U.S., and Naftali Bennett, the former prime minister of Israel, to discuss this major operation, and what comes next. We looked at all sides of the issue—from the logic of the attack and how Iran might respond, to the expected length of the campaign, and the mood on the ground in Israel.
For more background, read Michael’s piece from earlier this evening about what brought us to this crucial moment: “Is Israel About to Strike Iran’s Nuclear Facilities?”
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(Thank you to everyone who joined and brought questions.)
Very interesting, but I have two comments and one wish: 1. When Michael Oren says that Bennett rightly should get kudos for realizing the threat 7 years ago, he forgets that Netanyahu has been trying to get the world to stop Iran nuclearizing for much longer but to no avail. 2. He also forgot to mention that Bennett was PM for a year and could have attacked Iran since he saw it as so crucial but did not and subsequently criticized Netanyahu for dallying. Bennett did allow Lapid to sign away Israel's rights to gas reserves to Lebanon without bringing it to the Knesset, ostensibly to gain quiet in the north - and we see how that worked out. 3. Wish the USA would syngergize with Israel on the interceptions of missiles as it did in 2024 and maybe together they would manage to prevent any of them from hitting Israel. That is not declaring war or joining a war, it is protecting civilians from Iranian ICBMs and drones, which they would love to aim at the US too.
Thank you to Bari Weiss, Naftali Bennett, and Michael Oren for these interviews and the in-depth discussions about this fluid situation. I appreciate hearing news and opinions that I feel are honest and worthy of consideration. I'd also like to assure all of you (for whatever it's worth), that Mr. Kim and the others, both right and left, who would prefer that we abandon Israel at this critical juncture, do not speak for all Americans. In fact, I hope that they don't even speak for the majority of us. Many Americans stand firmly with Israel and would prefer that we were actively and clearly backing up Israel's efforts at taking down this serious threat. That's one reason that we elected President Trump. We make no mistake in believing that this foe is an imminent threat to the entire world. People who say that they can't attack the USA have been drinking the Kool-Aid instead of looking around and seeing what's really happening in the world, much of it right here under our noses. Wishing all of you the best and praying for safety for you and your families.