‘War with Iran not finished’: Netanyahu amid courtroom loss and political pressure at home

Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that the ongoing conflict involving Iran will not be considered finished unless Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile is “taken out” and its nuclear facilities are dismantled.

In an interview aired on CBS News’ 60 Minutes, Netanyahu said the presence of nuclear material remains a central issue.

“It’s not over, because there’s still nuclear material — enriched uranium — that has to be taken out of Iran. There’s still enrichment sites that have to be dismantled,” he said.

He further added that removing the material would be necessary to conclude the conflict, stating: “You go in and you take it out.”

“It can be done physically,” Netanyahu says

When asked how Iran’s uranium stockpile could be removed, Netanyahu suggested that it could be achieved through direct action or an agreement.

“I think it can be done physically. That’s not the problem,” he said.

He also indicated that an agreement would be the preferred option if it allowed access to the sites. “If you have an agreement and you go in and you take it out, why not? That’s the best way,” he added.

However, he declined to elaborate on specific military options or operational details.

Netanyahu said he believes US President Donald Trump shares a similar stance on Iran’s nuclear issue, suggesting alignment on the need to prevent Iran from maintaining enriched uranium stockpiles.

“I’m not going to talk about military means, but the president — what President Trump has said to me — ‘I want to go in there,’” Netanyahu said, referencing private discussions.

However, Trump’s public statements have appeared more cautious, with earlier comments suggesting Iran’s nuclear capability had been “contained” or “under control.”

Trump’s contrasting position on Iran nuclear threat

In a separate interview aired around the same period, Donald Trump said Iran had already suffered major setbacks.

He described Iran as “militarily defeated” and argued that monitoring systems could prevent any further escalation.

“We’ll get that at some point, whenever we want. We’ll have it surveilled,” Trump said.

He also warned of strong consequences if Iran attempted to approach sensitive nuclear sites, stating, “If anybody got near the place we will know about it and we’ll blow them up.”

Netanyahu also suggested that the Iran conflict involves wider strategic goals beyond the nuclear issue, including Iran’s regional influence through allied groups.

“There’s still proxies that Iran supports, their ballistic missiles that they still want to produce,” he said.

He added that while progress had been made, “all that is still there and there’s work to be done.”

He further linked Iran’s regional network to groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis, suggesting that weakening Iran’s leadership could significantly disrupt these alliances.

“If the regime in Iran collapses, the whole scaffolding of the terrorist proxy network collapses,” he said, while noting that such an outcome was not guaranteed.

Nuclear concerns and regional escalation

Iran’s nuclear programme has long been a central point of tension between Tehran, Israel, and Western powers. International agencies have previously raised concerns over uranium enrichment levels approaching weapons-grade capability, though Iran maintains its programme is for civilian energy purposes.

The conflict has also widened into broader regional instability, involving drone activity, maritime tensions in key shipping routes, and ongoing proxy conflicts across the Middle East.

Diplomatic efforts continue in parallel, but statements from both Israeli and US leadership indicate that fundamental disagreements remain over how Iran’s nuclear capabilities should be handled and whether military action remains an option.