Israel's Security Cabinet Reportedly Orders Iran Attack Preparations as Eisenkot Warns Netanyahu
Kan says the cabinet told the military to step up readiness for a possible strike, a caretaker government's call that the prime minister-designate is publicly contesting, while Iran says no base is out of reach.
Thursday, November 12, 2026/2 min read
Israel's security cabinet has told the military to step up preparations for a possible attack on Iran, according to the public broadcaster Kan, and the report landed in the middle of a government transition. The directives, Kan said, "could lead it to carry out activities that could trigger a war," Al Jazeera reported. The report came late on Wednesday and has not been confirmed by the Israeli government.
Tehran answered within hours, and the argument that matters most inside Israel is not about Iran at all. It is about who has the authority to decide.
What did Israel's security cabinet order?
The detail is thin. Kan did not describe the scope or timing of the order, and the Anadolu Agency account, which also relies on Kan, adds nothing on targets or dates. What is reported is that the cabinet, chaired by Benjamin Netanyahu, instructed the army to raise readiness for an operation that could escalate. Netanyahu has said the war on Iran will continue until the government in Tehran collapses, per Al Jazeera.
Anadolu also noted a Channel 12 report on Tuesday that Netanyahu and army chief Eyal Zamir again disagreed over possible action against Iran, with Zamir described as seeing the prime minister's steps as ill-advised. The article carried no direct statement from Zamir.
Why is Eisenkot objecting?
Gadi Eisenkot, who President Isaac Herzog tasked with forming a government at the weekend, urged Netanyahu in a statement on X to avoid deploying the military without a direct and immediate threat while a new government is formed. Anadolu said he warned that doing otherwise could damage trust in state institutions and put security chiefs in a dilemma over which orders to follow. Türkiye Today quoted him arguing that only 46 members of the Knesset still back Netanyahu's tenure.
The sources differ on whether his message was a letter or a post, and none carried a response from Netanyahu's office. The framing is constitutional rather than strategic: a caretaker government with no confidence of the parliament is being asked to stay its hand.
How did Iran respond?
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, wrote that every military base involved in any new US attack would be a legitimate target, from West Asia to Europe, adding "No safe distance. No safe haven." We covered his earlier statement that no talks were under way. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the lead negotiator, told Al Jazeera that Hormuz will never return to its pre-war status and that the ball is in the American court, awaiting a reply to Iran's seven conditions.
On the American side, Al Jazeera reported that Donald Trump says he is ready to resume the war if the diplomatic track offered by Qatar fails, while Marco Rubio argues economic pressure is working and large-scale operations are unnecessary. The immediate watch points are whether the cabinet meets again before a government is formed, and whether Washington answers Tehran's conditions first.
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