TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military estimates it would need several more weeks of fighting to complete its war goals in Iran, two Israeli military officials told NPR on Tuesday. That timeline could be cut short as the U.S. makes efforts to try to end the war.
President Trump said the U.S. is holding "productive" talks to seek an end to the Iran war, though Iran denied the existence of direct talks. Pakistan, Egypt, Oman and Turkey have been playing a role in backchannel efforts toward reaching a U.S.-Iran ceasefire, according to an Egyptian official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the discreet negotiations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Trump's diplomatic efforts, but did not say whether he supported them.
"President Trump believes there is an opportunity to leverage the tremendous achievements we have reached alongside the U.S. military to realize the goals of the war through an agreement, an agreement that will safeguard our vital interests," Netanyahu said in a video address posted online.
Though Israel's military said this week it has destroyed or disabled the majority of Iran's ballistic missile launchers, Iran continues to launch missiles at Israel. That includes an Iranian missile that evaded U.S. and Israeli air defense systems and hit a residential neighborhood in Tel Aviv, damaging several apartment buildings and lightly wounding some people, according to Israeli authorities.
The Israeli military still needs weeks to complete its war aims, the two Israeli officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity in order to discuss internal military deliberations.
One of the officials, serving in a senior role in the Israeli military's operations directorate, said the war has degraded Iran's chain of command, delayed Iran's nuclear plans and destroyed many of its military industries, but that Iran remains an "active, dangerous player in the region." The official also said that there are still remaining Iranian military industries and capabilities that Israel seeks to attack.
"We are in many ways halfway there," the official said. "There are very significant achievements, both at the tactical level and at the strategic level. But there has not been a full strategic victory."
The official said the Israeli military does not know when Trump will declare the war over.
Aya Batrawy contributed to this story from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
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