Ending the IDF's war on Iran may be delayed by a decision by US President Donald Trump on the issues of opening the Straits of Hormuz and the 60% enriched uranium potentially usable for nuclear weapons, which the Islamic Republic still possesses, defense sources implied on Monday.
In other words, absent current US goals regarding the Straits, which were not part of Israel's mission, Jerusalem might already be able to end its part in the war with Iran.
Defense sources said that they were not convinced that Iran would accept a deal being offered by Trump to end the war in the coming week, though that is the US president's preference.
If the Islamic regime does not accept such a deal, defense sources said Trump would decide how to address the crisis at Hormuz, where Iran has world maritime trade in a chokehold, using a threat to attack any ships that try to cross through the crucial maritime artery.
Trump has said he might use ground forces to open the Straits, and he has already been using American airpower to start the process for a period of weeks.
He has also said he might use ground forces to take over Kharg Island to try to further coerce Iran into agreeing to open the Straits.
In the midst of all of this, IDF sources said already on March 19 that close to 90% of the air force's pre-war targets had been struck.
IDF Chief Spokesman: List of pre-war targets almost complete
Over the weekend, IDF Chief Spokesman Brig. Gen. Efi Deffrin said the original list of pre-war targets would be completed within days - meaning it may already be complete.
Defense sources implied that if Israel continued to strike Iran at this point, it would be to help the US keep pressure on Iran to achieve Trump's goals regarding Hormuz.
On March 26, the IDF said that naval intelligence has assisted in recent days with assassinating Iranian Naval Chief Alireza Tangsiri, with eliminating key Iranian naval cruise missile production sites, and Iranian sites related to submarines and other underwater threats.
All of these actions can indirectly reduce Iran's capability to threaten the Straits of Hormuz, the Islamic regime's current most powerful pressure point on the US, the West, Arab countries, and a wide array of other countries.
More specifically, in recent days, the air force, acting on information from IDF naval intelligence and the broader IDF intelligence directorate, struck two key naval cruise missile production sites in Tehran.
The targeted sites operated under the command of the Iranian Ministry of Defense and were used by the Iranian regime to develop and manufacture long-range naval cruise missiles, which are capable of rapidly destroying targets at sea and on land.
Such weapons could be used against the US and other allies seeking to open the Straits of Hormuz.
Defense sources added on Monday that Israel continues to provide intelligence assistance to the US regarding the Straits.
Besides the Hormuz issue, Iran has over 400 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium buried under its Isfahan facility and possibly some buried also under its Natanz and Fordow facilities.
According to defense sources, Trump is not expected to end the war without either resolving that issue or maintaining heavy pressure on Iran regarding that issue.
Unlike Hormuz, the enriched uranium was an important issue for Israel as part of this war as well, though it is unclear that Jerusalem would keep the war going simply in order to resolve that issue, given that the uranium is still buried under rubble, which has prevented Iran from accessing it for over nine months.