Washington is receiving sharply conflicting messages from Israel and Saudi Arabia as President Trump weighs military action against Iran.
A former Gulf diplomat told MBN’s Joe Kawly that what’s unfolding in D.C. is not coordination but competition. “Everyone agrees Iran is weaker than it was,” he said. “The fight now is over whether you finish the job with force, or risk making things worse by acting too broadly.”
Israeli officials are firmly in the first camp. Intelligence briefings led by Israel’s military intelligence chief have focused on rebuilt nuclear sites, missile infrastructure, and IRGC command nodes. According to the former Gulf diplomat, Israel’s argument is straightforward: Iran is rebuilding faster than expected, protests have been contained, and delay only restores deterrence to Tehran. “From Israel’s view, this is the window,” he said.
Saudi Arabia’s position is more conflicted. Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman was in Washington this week for high-level meetings, even as Riyadh publicly reiterated that it would not allow its airspace or territory to be used in any attack on Iran. That message has been echoed by Qatar and Oman, which joined Saudi Arabia in mid-January diplomacy warning that a regional war would hit Gulf energy infrastructure and U.S. bases first.
Privately, however, the Saudi message has sharpened. A U.S. diplomat familiar with the Washington meetings told MBN that Saudi officials warned that endless threats without action could backfire. “The concern they raised is that Iran is learning it can absorb pressure and wait it out,” the diplomat said.
That warning comes with conditions. The Saudis are not advocating a broad military campaign. Instead, they are pressing for narrowly tailored strikes, if any, focused on IRGC leadership and internal repression organs, not nuclear facilities or national infrastructure. “They’re trying to avoid giving Tehran the symbolism of a national attack,” the diplomat explained. “They don’t want to unify the country behind the regime.”
The contradiction is stark. Prince Khalid bin Salman has warned privately that failing to strike would embolden Iran, while Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has publicly vetoed the use of Saudi airspace for any attack. The result is a strategic bind: the United States must either act through suboptimal corridors that increase operational risk or hold back and risk appearing weak. Israel is urging speed and scale. Qatar and Oman, meanwhile, continue to argue that escalation could spiral beyond control.
As the former Gulf diplomat put it: “Israel wants decisiveness. Saudi Arabia wants control. Trump is hearing both at the same time.”
That tug-of-war helps explain why the military buildup continues; intelligence sharing has intensified, and yet no final decision has been announced.
Joe Kawly
Joe Kawly is a veteran global affairs journalist with over two decades of frontline reporting across Washington, D.C. and the Middle East. A CNN Journalism Fellow and Georgetown University graduate, his work focuses on U.S. foreign policy, Arab world politics, and diplomacy. With deep regional insight and narrative clarity, Joe focuses on making complex global dynamics clear, human, and relevant.
