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<div class="gmail-inner-article-top"><h1 class="gmail-">Israel pressuring Trump to 'destroy' Iran's energy infrastructure: Report</h1><p class="gmail-">A
CIA analysis says Iran can withstand a US blockade of its ports and oil
exports for at least four months, amid reports that Trump has grown
'bored' with the war</p><div class="gmail-another-name"><p><a href="https://thecradle.co/authors/news-desk-9" style="color:rgb(164,4,4)">News Desk</a></p></div><div class="gmail-another-name" style="margin-top:16px"><p><span style="color:rgb(84,88,94)">MAY 9, 2026 - </span><font size="1"><a href="https://thecradle.co/articles/israel-pressuring-trump-to-destroy-irans-energy-infrastructure-report">https://thecradle.co/articles/israel-pressuring-trump-to-destroy-irans-energy-infrastructure-report</a></font></p></div></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-img"><img src="https://thecradle-main.oss-eu-central-1.aliyuncs.com/public/articles/e0eae056-4ba5-11f1-8e9d-00163e02c055.jpeg" alt="" width="538" height="303" style="margin-right: 0px;"><span>(Photo credit: Hossein Beris/Middle East Images/Middle East Images via AFP)</span></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-content"><div class="gmail-row"><div class="gmail-col-md-8 gmail-col-sm-7"><div class="gmail-article-content"><span class="gmail-article-body"><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Israel
has told the US that any return to fighting with Iran must include the
destruction of the Islamic Republic's energy infrastructure, Israel's
Channel 12 </span><a href="https://www.al-akhbar.com/news/world/891591/%D8%AA%D9%84-%D8%A3%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A8-%D8%AA%D8%B7%D9%84%D8%A8-%D9%85%D9%86-%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%B4%D9%86%D8%B7%D9%86-%D8%B6%D8%B1%D8%A8-%D9%82%D8%B7%D8%A7%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B7%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A5%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A"><span style="background-color:transparent">reported</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent"> on 9 May.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Israeli
leaders are reportedly trying to convince their counterparts in
Washington that this is "the only practical way" to make progress in
confronting Tehran and that this would force the country to enter
negotiations from "a submissive position."</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
channel quoted Israeli estimates that destroying Iran's energy
infrastructure could be accomplished in just "24 hours of strategic
bombing."</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent"> "If you are not going to topple the regime, at least leave it paralyzed," one Israeli official was quoted as saying.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Additionally,
Israeli broadcaster Kan, citing an Israeli official, reported that US
President Donald Trump is \u201cinclined to resume fighting" and that the
Pentagon "had made actual preparations to launch strikes on Iranian
infrastructure, before the plan was ultimately canceled.\u201d</span></p><div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div> <p><span style="background-color:transparent">The
official added that Trump's reversal on resuming fighting "was not only
due to pressure from some Gulf states, but also as a result of pressure
from Jared Kushner and Steve Wittkopf, who believe it is possible to
extract concessions from Iran through negotiations."</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Trump has previously threatened to bomb and destroy Iran's energy infrastructure and commit genocide against its people.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">In
response, the Iranians warned that they would bomb all Israeli, US, and
US-linked infrastructure in the Persian Gulf region if their vital
energy facilities were targeted.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Saturday's reports from Israeli TV outlets come hours after </span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/national-security/2026/05/iran-war-trump-deal/687100/?gift=SCYx-5scVta3-cr_IlgTyXkf7AYAr_5xk2CmLcZ5mB8"><span style="background-color:transparent"><i>The Atlantic</i></span></a><span style="background-color:transparent">
cited several White House aides and senior officials who said that
\u201cPresident Trump really, really wants the war with Iran to end.\u201d</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">\u201cTrump is tired of the war, which has proved far more difficult and lasted far longer than he had expected,\u201d the report says. </span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Amid
rising gas prices and declining poll support, Trump is concerned about
becoming entangled in a West Asian conflict similar to the one former
president George W. Bush faced. "He is ready to move on," the US
magazine stated.</span></p><div class="gmail-twitter-tweet gmail-twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"></div> <p><span style="background-color:transparent">Complicating
matters for Trump, Iran has refused to return to the negotiating table,
making it impossible for Trump to reach an agreement that he can claim
as a victory.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">While
fighting has largely subsided, Iran continues to block passage through
the Strait of Hormuz for Gulf oil exports, threatening to push US
gasoline prices higher and cause a defeat for Trump's Republican party
in this fall's mid-term elections.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Washington
is still waiting for Iran to respond to Trump's latest offer, a
one-page memorandum that seeks to extend the ceasefire.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">\u201cTrump
never thought it would turn out like this. After the impressive
military operation to snatch Nicolas Maduro from Caracas, the president
set his eyes on Iran, telling confidants that it would be \u2018another
Venezuela,\u2019\u201d <i>The Atlantic</i> added, citing outside advisors to the president.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">"Trump
believed that the US military was unstoppable," and expected a victory
against Iran to come "in days, a week or two at most." However, after
two months of war, none of Trump's stated goals have been achieved.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">One outside adviser, who speaks with Trump regularly, told the magazine that the president is "bored" with the war.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">Amid
the impasse, a US naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian
ports remains in place in a bid to block Iranian oil exports to Asia.</span></p><p><span style="background-color:transparent">However,
a CIA assessment indicates Iran would not \u200csuffer severe economic
pressure from the blockade for about another four months, the <i>Washington Post </i></span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/uae-countering-iranian-air-attack-after-trump-says-ceasefire-still-effect-2026-05-08/"><span style="background-color:transparent">reported</span></a><span style="background-color:transparent"> on Friday.</span></p></span></div></div></div></div>
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