US President Donald Trump is considering whether to resume military strikes on Iran before the November 3 midterm elections, with the Pentagon told to finalise preparations for renewed combat operations.
No final decision has been taken and no date has been fixed.
US Central Command was instructed several days ago to complete planning for a return to major combat, Axios reported.
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A Pentagon official said its job was to present options to the president, while a White House official said Trump had every option available.
Meanwhile, The Atlantic reported that the White House had asked for strike options that could be executed before the vote, ranging from limited strikes to a sweeping campaign.
Sources told Axios that a full resumption would likely involve heavy bombing of Iranian energy, infrastructure and nuclear targets.
The deliberations follow weeks of relative calm in a conflict now in its eighth month.
The war began on February 28 with US and Israeli strikes. Washington has not hit Iran for several weeks, and it had been widely assumed that Trump would keep it that way until after the election, since the war is unpopular and has weighed on Republican candidates.
Fuel prices are central to the calculation. Crude climbed to nearly $118 a barrel in the spring and has since stayed around $100, while US petrol averages about $4.37 a gallon, against just under $3 before the war, according to AAA data.
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Advocates of a pre-election strike argue it would let Trump claim a win. Even they accept that limited action would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz or bring Tehran to the table.Â
Moreover, diplomacy has stalled. Qatari mediators are reportedly awaiting Iran’s response to a US counterproposal that included demands for nuclear concessions.
Trump’s national security team met at Camp David on Friday, and an Israeli official said part of the discussion covered resuming major operations. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the meeting focused on long-term foreign policy planning.
Israel is also a factor. Trump spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, their second call in days.
Two Israeli officials told Axios that any renewed offensive would most likely be a joint US-Israeli effort.
One said action before the US elections could not be ruled out but became far more likely afterwards. Israel’s own election is due roughly a week earlier, and heightened tension could help Netanyahu politically.
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