As indicated by the media, a conversation between the leaders of the two countries on the same topic took place the day before, on January 14.
Axios recalled that Trump is exploring options with a possible military strike or negotiations with Iranian authorities, who have faced large-scale protests and unrest.
During the first conversation, Netanyahu asked Trump to postpone a military strike on Iran to give Israel more time to prepare for a possible response from Tehran, the media writes.
This was one of the reasons why the US President abandoned the attack. But US officials say military action is still on the agenda if Iran resumes killing protesters.
At the same time, Israeli officials believe that despite the delay, a US military strike on Iran could occur in the coming days.
On January 15, the media, including Agence France-Presse, reported that Trump was persuaded to abandon the attack on Iran by the authorities of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman.
In particular, Arab countries, in the course of non-public contacts, indicated to the American administration that an attempt to overthrow the Iranian regime would be a shock to oil markets and ultimately harm the US economy.
However, on January 16, Trump assured that he had “convinced himself” to abandon the strike on Iran, and not the Arab countries and Israel.
Context
On December 28, 2025, massive anti-government protests began in Iran amid economic problems in the country. Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called the protesters “rebels” and called for a crackdown on the demonstrations. Clashes arose between protesters and law enforcement officers, which, as Reuters wrote, became the bloodiest in the last three years.
The media wrote on January 13, 2026 that 12 thousand protesters died in Iran, most of them in two days.
Earlier, on January 10, the Iranian army announced its readiness to join in the suppression of protests in the country. Iran's Prosecutor General threatened to execute protesters. On the same day, Trump said that the United States was ready to come to the aid of Iran.
On January 13, Trump tweeted that “help is on the way.”
Reuters wrote on January 14, citing two European officials, that a US operation against Iran “looks likely” and could begin in the next 24 hours. However, on January 15, Iran's ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, said that Trump had already informed Tehran that he “will not attack the country.”
The WSJ reported on January 15 that anti-government protests have dropped sharply in Iran. due to the authorities' brutal treatment of protesters.
