US President Donald Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with the limits of US military leverage against Iran, according to CBS News, citing sources familiar with the matter.
This comes after aides told Trump that, unlike the recent operation removing leader Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, an operation in Iran would require more than one strike, according to the Monday CBS report. This could open the US up to a long-term military campaign in the Middle East, the report explained.
American F-22 fighter jets landed at an Israeli Air Force base on Tuesday evening amid rising tensions between the US and Iran, according to Walla's Amir Bohbot.
Pentagon officials earlier in the week raised concerns about such a campaign, warning that it could cost the lives of US troops and those of the nation's allies, according to the Wall Street Journal.
In particular, the WSJ and Axios reported that Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine opposed the war with Iran, a claim the president subsequently denied in a Truth Social post.
The WSJ noted that several Pentagon officials issued similar warnings to Caine, although the general was the chief among them.
According to Trump, General Caine "would [not like] to see war in Iran, but if a decision is made on going against Iran at a military level, it is his opinion that it will be something easily won."
Trump still undecided between Iran attack scale, or potential deal, sources tell 'Post'
Trump has not yet decided whether he wants a deal with Iran, or to launch a weeks-long war to topple the regime, or to launch a narrow attack to try to pressure Tehran into a deal more to his liking, sources indicated to The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
With massive amounts of fake news and speculation flooding the media, the Post understands that top American and Israeli officials are sometimes as ultimately as unsure about what Trump might do next as the general public.
One of the latest trends, which sources say has been discussed and is now being widely leaked to the media, is the possibility of Trump searching for a middle-ground decision, such as a narrow and short attack on the Islamic Republic.
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.