Hegseth meets Netanyahu in Israel ahead of election

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel on Monday during an unannounced visit, just over a week before an Israeli election and amid questions about whether the United States will resume military operations against Iran.

A senior U.S. military official and a person involved in the matter in Israel confirmed the meeting to CBS News. Both spoke anonymously. Axios first reported the visit, citing two people with knowledge of it. There was no immediate indication of what Hegseth and Netanyahu discussed.

Hegseth posted on X on Monday that he was in the area overseen by U.S. Central Command. He shared a photograph of himself addressing American service members, whom he said were “on a historic mission,” but did not specify where he was or mention Israel. The Pentagon declined to comment on the visit, CBS News reported. Al Jazeera reported that Israel’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The meeting comes as Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party and its coalition partners seek to remain in power in the Oct. 27 election. The coalition faces centrist challengers, including a party led by former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot. Opinion polls suggest Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist coalition could lose its governing majority, though the opposition may also struggle to form a government, Al Jazeera reported.

President Donald Trump endorsed Netanyahu on Sunday, calling him “a Great Warrior Prime Minister, and an even greater Partner for Peace in combatting the Islamic Republic of Iran.” In a Truth Social post, Trump also gave Netanyahu his “Complete and Total Endorsement” and wrote, “BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”

Vice President JD Vance took a different position on the election. In an interview Monday with digital media outlet 2WAY, he declined to endorse Netanyahu. “I endorse American candidates, and that’s where I’m focused on is the midterms,” Vance said. “I’m not anti-endorsing him, but I’m not pro-endorsing him; I’m not getting involved in Israeli elections.”

The visit follows joint U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran in late February. The United States also struck three Iranian nuclear sites in June 2025 during a broader conflict between Israel and Iran. Iran and the United States have largely refrained from striking each other in recent weeks, CBS News reported.

Trump has said he is weighing whether to reach a deal with Iran’s leadership or “annihilate” the country, and has suggested a decision could come after the U.S. midterm elections in November. Netanyahu told Israeli media last week that he did not plan to renew strikes on Iran before Israel’s election, saying “it is not convenient for us.”

Despite Trump’s endorsement, his administration has at times pressed Israel on other issues. CBS News reported that it urged Israel over the spring and summer to ease its strikes on Lebanon, encouraged action against settler violence in the West Bank and sought a longer-term deal with Hamas in Gaza.