Netanyahu and Trump discuss potential for regime change in Iran

During discussions last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged U.S. President Donald Trump to jointly call for public protests to destabilize the Iranian government. Netanyahu argued that the Iranian regime was in chaos following the targeted killings of senior officials, including Ali Larijani and Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani. According to reports from Axios and Channel 12, citing American and Israeli officials, President Trump rejected this proposal due to concerns over potential mass bloodshed during a violent crackdown by the Revolutionary Guard. While the U.S. government maintains that regime change is not an official war objective, it considers the possibility of internal collapse as a potential incidental outcome. Disagreements persist between the two leaders regarding the strategy for political destabilization, even as they remain aligned on most military aspects of the conflict. Public statements from the U.S. regarding regime change have decreased in frequency compared to early rhetoric following the start of the war.