Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to depart for the United States Sunday morning, ahead of a meeting with US President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
During the meeting, Netanyahu will present Trump with evidence that Iran is succeeding in rebuilding its ballistic missile program and will seek a “green light” for possible military action.
Netanyahu will also clarify to Trump that Israel will not agree to move to Phase B of the Gaza Strip plan until Hamas disarms and the last Israeli hostage, Ran Gvili, is returned for burial in Israel.
In addition to the meeting with Trump on Monday, Netanyahu is also expected to hold several additional meetings with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Jewish community in Miami.
Last week,NBC News reported that Israeli officials believe Iran is restoring production capabilities that were damaged in previous strikes and is also working to rebuild its air defense systems. Both of these developments are defined as a more immediate threat than the nuclear issue.
Last month, Channel 13 News reported that Iran has renewed most of its missile stockpile and is close to reaching the number of missiles it had before Operation Rising Lion.
According to the report, six months after the 12-day war last June, the Iranians are working intensively on producing surface-to-surface missiles - and are expected to possess about 2,000 missiles capable of reaching Israel within a few months.