Mossad Chief Meets Trump Officials in Washington on Iran as Netanyahu Presses for Renewed War

The director of Israel's spy agency Mossad, Roman Gofman, was in Washington on Friday for talks with senior Trump administration officials about the war in Iran, according to an Axios report citing three sources with knowledge of the matter. Gofman, described as one of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's closest confidants, was meeting CIA Director Ratcliffe and was expected to travel to Miami to meet White House envoy Witkoff. The visit comes as Netanyahu is pressing President Donald Trump to resume the war against Iran.

On Thursday, Trump posted on Truth Social that the United States does not need a deal with Iran, saying the U.S. has Iran's money, hundreds of billions of dollars, and its Strait, a reference to the Strait of Hormuz. Since the Republicans' losses in the midterm elections, Trump has played down the prospect of renewed major war on Iran. Axios had earlier reported that Netanyahu was pressing Trump to strike Iran right after the vote, but that did not happen beyond some smaller coastal actions.

Left-leaning and right-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while alternative and independent outlets had. Those outlets are focusing on different angles. The Times of India headlines the Gofman talks and says Trump is resisting Netanyahu, citing a report. ZeroHedge frames the meeting more speculatively, asking whether something big is brewing, linking it to Trump's "no deal" post, saying things could go either way quickly, and noting in its headline that oil spiked. Both rely on the Axios reporting about the visit.