Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he would inform U.S. President Donald Trump of what Israel intends to do, but will not ask him for a green light to strike Iran.
Netanyahu added that he had issued a directive stating that "the only acceptable solution is the overthrow of the fanatical regime in Iran."
He said that Israel has "crushed its adversaries" in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Tehran, and Iran itself, considering that it has “completed 90 percent of the mission, with 10 percent remaining.”
Speaking at an officer graduation ceremony, he added: "There is only one way to remove this threat once and for all: overthrowing the regime in Iran. These are my instructions to the IDF (Israeli army), Mossad, and the security agencies."
Referring to the Iranian supreme leader, Netanyahu stated: "The regime in Iran has not yet learned the lesson. Mojtaba Khamenei, the tyrant of our era, has decided to follow in his father's footsteps."
Netanyahu noted that "as long as Iran seeks to destroy Israel, an existential threat will remain, and Trump, my close friend, shares this view."
He added that they "will sever the head of the octopus as well as its arms -- namely Hamas and Hezbollah."