Roman Gofman arrived in Washington on Friday to meet with CIA Director John Ratcliffe regarding Iran, according to The Times of Israel.
The Mossad director’s trip included a scheduled journey to Miami for discussions with White House envoy Steve Witkoff. The Axios news site reported the travel details, citing three unnamed sources familiar with the matter. The Mossad, the CIA, and the White House declined to comment on the diplomatic and intelligence meetings.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not inform opposition figures of the visit during a security briefing on Thursday. Channel 12 reported that Gofman’s journey was concealed from Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, while Netanyahu attempts to secure United States backing for a renewed military campaign against Tehran.
President Donald Trump has publicly expressed skepticism regarding an immediate military strike, favoring a strategy of economic sanctions and maritime blockades. “A caretaker prime minister can legally take Israel to war, including against Iran,” Asher said, according to Al Jazeera reporting that Netanyahu's caretaker government retains the legal authority to initiate military action despite losing its parliamentary majority in last month's elections.
Senior figures within Eisenkot’s bloc stated on Friday that Netanyahu failed to justify the necessity of an immediate attack during their security consultation. Eisenkot subsequently wrote on social media that Netanyahu’s administration requires strict supervision to prevent any exploitation of national security for political gain.
“Netanyahu would be asking the country to accept the consequences of a decision that could outlast his government,” said Ehab Jabareen, an analyst and Palestinian citizen of Israel, speaking to Al Jazeera.
Mossad Director Roman Gofman is visiting Washington for talks with senior US officials as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presses US President Donald Trump to resume the war on Iran, three sources familiar with the matter told Axios. Gofman, one of Netanyahu's closest… pic.twitter.com/JpQa4Rt3QG
Within Israel’s defense establishment, “the army's role is to prepare for war. What happens behind the scenes does not always indicate decisions that will be made,” a security source told the Kan public broadcaster regarding IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who remains opposed to an immediate strike, arguing that the threat from Iran is not urgent enough to disrupt the formation of a new government.
Conversely, Netanyahu, Gofman, Shin Bet chief David Zini, National Security Council chair Shmuel Ben Ezra, and Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter support taking immediate military action.
The regional situation escalated further as the US Navy’s Bahrain-based 5th Fleet concluded a diplomatic and operational visit to Israel, meeting with Israeli Navy chief Vice Adm. Eyal Harel. Simultaneously, CENTCOM confirmed that Iran “launched two one-way attack drones toward Bahrain” overnight, targeting a US early-warning radar in response to an earlier strike in Iran's southern Sirik county.
