Netanyahu withheld Nasrallah assassination from Sullivan, book claims

As Israel prepared to assassinate Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in September 2024, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his senior defense officials disagreed over whether to notify the Biden administration, according to Elliot Kaufman and a second source familiar with the deliberations.

Netanyahu told Israeli defense officials that the U.S. would not approve of the mission, according to Kaufman, co-author of 'In the War Room: The Inside Story of Israel's Fight Against Hamas and the Iranian Axis.'

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi supported informing Washington, believing the Americans might support a strike against a Hezbollah leader linked to the deaths of U.S. service members.

The strike on Hezbollah's headquarters in Beirut on September 27, 2024, killed Nasrallah, who had led the Iranian-backed terrorist organization for over three decades, marking a major turning point in Israel's campaign against Hezbollah.

Kaufman argued that Israel had spent nearly a year waiting for American diplomacy to end Hezbollah's attacks on its northern communities without success, leading to the decision to proceed with the strike.

The book also describes how Netanyahu initially resisted launching a full-scale ground invasion of Gaza following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas massacre, only to later become a strong advocate for continuing the war.