The Media Line: Netanyahu Says Iran Has Been Weakened by War, but Regime Change Depends on Its People  

Netanyahu Says Iran Has Been Weakened by War, but Regime Change Depends on Its People  

By The Media Line Staff  

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Israel and the United States have made major gains in the war against Iran, damaging Tehran’s nuclear and missile capabilities and weakening its regional position, but he said the fall of the regime is far from assured and ultimately depends on the Iranian people themselves.  

Speaking in his first press conference since the start of the war, Netanyahu said the campaign had already changed the strategic landscape. “This is no longer the same Iran, this is no longer the same Middle East and this is also not the same Israel,” he said. “We initiate and attack with force. Trump and I talk almost every day, exchange ideas and advice, and decide together.”  

Netanyahu said the war’s main objectives are to inflict severe damage on Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs and to prevent Tehran from protecting those capabilities by burying them underground. “We are aiming to stop Iran from moving nuclear and ballistic projects underground,” he said.  

Israel and the United States had already achieved significant results in the campaign, strengthening Israel’s standing “as a regional power and, in certain respects, a global power,” he added.  

Netanyahu recalled that he and US President Donald Trump had previously warned Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei that if Tehran tried to rebuild what he called its “industries of death,” Israel would strike again. “Not only did he not listen,” Netanyahu said, referring to Khamenei, “he accelerated efforts to rebuild them and bury them deep underground, under high mountains.”  

At the same time, Netanyahu said Israeli action can only help create the conditions for internal political change in Iran, not guarantee it.  

“We can create conditions for regime change, but it is up to Iran’s people to take to the streets,” he said. “I can’t say with certainty the Iranian people will overthrow the regime, but we can certainly help.”  

In another appeal directed at Iranians, Netanyahu said, “The moment you can set out on a new path of freedom is getting closer.” He also said of the prospect of change in Tehran: “It’s not certain that this will happen – it depends on the Iranian people.” Referring to that uncertainty, he added, “You can bring a man to water, but you can’t force him to drink.”  

Netanyahu also addressed the fighting on Israel’s northern front, saying Hezbollah remains under heavy pressure but still retains some firepower.  

“Hezbollah feels the comfort of our arm and will pay a very heavy price for its aggression,” he said.  

Asked about earlier claims that Hezbollah had been defeated in the previous campaign, Netanyahu said Israel had already prevented a far more devastating scenario. “We talked then about 150,000 rockets and missiles, about the destruction of the towers in Tel Aviv, about the eyes of ruins in the rest of the country, and about 15,000 to 20,000 dead. All of this did not materialize because we dealt them a tremendous blow, but that does not mean that they did not have any residual fire left.”  

He added, “Tomorrow they will be even weaker—both Iran and Hezbollah.”  

Netanyahu said he had warned the Lebanese government against allowing Hezbollah to keep operating from its territory. “I told them, ‘you’re playing with fire,’” he said. “We will exact a heavy price from Hezbollah, and I hope Lebanon’s government is [with] us.”  

Asked about Mojtaba Khamenei and Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem, Netanyahu declined to spell out Israel’s intentions. “I wouldn’t issue life insurance policies on any of the leaders of the terrorist organization … I don’t intend to give an exact message here about what we are planning or what we are going to do.”