Israel’s Iran chemical arms warning splits US officials

Israel has told the United States that Iran is considering using chemical weapons against its adversaries. Some American officials are alarmed by the warning, and others are deeply skeptical, The New York Times reported Tuesday, citing U.S. and regional officials. Some of the skeptics see the intelligence as part of a pressure campaign by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to bring the Trump administration back to major combat operations against Iran. The split comes at a tense point. Eight months into the war, Washington is weighing a diplomatic deal against renewed strikes.nytimes.com

What Israel is claiming

Over the past two weeks, Israeli officials have told U.S. spy agencies that the chemical threat is more urgent than Iran's nuclear ambitions, according to the Times. They said Tehran is moving quickly to develop ways to put chemical agents on missiles or smuggle them into Israel or another country. Officials who see the threat as real point to recent warnings about Iranian plans to attack U.S. interests. Others compare the claims to the flawed 2002 intelligence on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.nytimes.com

Israel also briefed Gulf governments. A regional official said Israel offered assessments but no evidence, and that Gulf governments found the claims "unserious," the Times of Israel reported. The Times also reported that drills this week by Israel's Home Front Command have not focused on chemical attacks. Netanyahu's office did not address the specific claims. It said Israel "is following closely every threat from the Iranian terror regime, and is ready to confront them." Iran denies having chemical weapons and has called such accusations psychological warfare by Israel.timesofisrael.com

Within the U.S. intelligence community, there is little dispute that Iran is developing chemical weapons, the Jerusalem Post noted. The disagreement is over whether its leaders would ever use them, especially if Iran is not attacked again. Dana Stroul, a former senior Pentagon official, said Iran has stockpiled components for decades but never used them. She warned that Tehran could feel "existentially pressured" to cross that line.members.jpost.com

Strikes possibly as soon as Wednesday

U.S. Central Command has a plan to strike Iran as early as Wednesday, November 4, the day after the midterm elections, pending President Trump's approval, the Times of Israel reported, citing the Times. Three aircraft carriers are in the region. U.S. forces struck an Iranian anti-aircraft facility late Monday, and Trump called it a "minor attack." Qatari mediators are meanwhile pressing a draft deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz.timesofisrael.com

Some analysts suggest Netanyahu, who is struggling to form a government after last week's elections, may be using a security emergency as political leverage, the Times reported. The White House did not comment. A U.S. official said Trump would defend the United States and its allies against any threat.nytimes.com