Trump may be ‘setting trap’ for Iran, similar to escalation before 12-day Israel-Iran war: report

Trump is trying to lure Iran 'into a trap similar to the 12-day war in June last year', Israeli media has speculated, amid fears of an imminent escalation.

31.01.2026

By The New Arab Staff

Source:https://www.newarab.com/news/trump-may-set-trap-iran-similar-12-day-war-report

Israeli media reported this week that US President Donald Trump may be laying the foundations for a "trap" for Iran, in similar moves to what preceded the 12-day Israel-Iran war last year.

"Trump has escalated his rhetoric against Iran in recent hours, despite continuing to call for negotiations," the Hebrew-language Yedioth Aharonot reported.

Trump is trying to lure Iranians "into a trap similar to the 12-day war in June last year", the report continued.

On Wednesday, Trump said a "massive fleet" was advancing towards Iran, before warning Tehran it must cooperate or risk facing a "much worse attack".

He urged Tehran to come to the negotiating table and "talk for a fair, just and good deal for everyone", adding the agreement would not include any nuclear weapons for anyone.

Israeli media reports indicated that Iran may show limited flexibility on its nuclear programme but would not compromise on its ballistic missiles.

The report reiterated that the US president may consider revisiting the June 2025 scenario and launch an attack after setting a ceiling for Tehran that it could not meet.

Last year on 13 June, Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran, before the United States later joined by targeting nuclear facilities.

"Trump himself appears not to have made a final decision yet regarding his stance toward Iran, while several countries, including Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Egypt, are working in an effort to mediate between the Americans and the Iranians." Israeli media reported.

An unnamed source told the paper that Washington is offering Tehran a deal that includes abandoning its nuclear program, including giving up uranium enrichment and handing over its stockpile to a third country, scaling back its ballistic missile program—possibly even limiting its range so that it does not reach Israel—and halting support for armed groups.

According to senior Israeli officials and experts on Iranian affairs, there is a possibility that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, may agree to a compromise and show flexibility on the nuclear programme, but would likely not agree to demands on ballistic missiles.

"This therefore raises questions about how firmly Trump is insisting on these demands, and whether this is merely a negotiating tactic in which the U.S. president would be satisfied with addressing only the nuclear program, while abandoning the other contentious issues," the report said.

Earlier this month, Israeli media also reported that Tel Aviv was lobbying the US to "postpone" a potential attack on Iran in favour of "preparing for a large-scale assault" for a later time, after US-Israeli assessments that a limited operation would "provoke a strong Iranian response".

Reports also said that Israel had asked its ally Washington to refrain from attacking Iran amid widespread protests in the country, as it feared that Tehran "might not be weakened enough" for US strikes to deliver a decisive blow.