21.10.2026 06:20
Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir was not invited to the secret meeting held by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and US Defense Secretary Hegseth at a military air base. While it became a matter of curiosity why Zamir was not invited, the critical meeting before the elections raised the possibility of a new attack on Iran.
A striking claim has been made regarding a secret meeting reportedly held between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at a military air base. It was alleged that Israeli Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir was not invited to the meeting attended by senior military and political officials.
CHIEF OF THE GENERAL STAFF NOT INVITED TO MEETING
According to a report by Israeli state television KAN, Netanyahu and Hegseth held a closed-door meeting at Ovda Air Base in southern Israel. Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz and other senior officials were also present at the meeting.
However, the absence of Israeli Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir from the meeting drew attention. KAN stated that it was not that Zamir had not been informed of the meeting, but that he had not been directly invited, and said, 'Chief of the General Staff Zamir did not attend the extraordinary meeting held at an air base in the south last night, nor was he invited.'
WHY ZAMIR WAS NOT CALLED REMAINS UNKNOWN
No explanation has been made as to why Zamir, the highest-ranking commander of the Israeli army, was not called to the meeting where critical figures in defense and security gathered. No official information about the content of the meeting was shared either.
IRAN WAS ON THE AGENDA OF THE SECRET MEETING
According to information in the Israeli press, Iran formed the main agenda of the meeting between Netanyahu and Hegseth. It was stated that the US and Israel assessed the possibility of restarting large-scale military operations against Iran.
It was also claimed that, in order to maintain the secrecy of the meeting, Hegseth came to Israel on a military transport aircraft instead of an official government plane.
CRITICAL MEETING DAYS BEFORE ELECTIONS
Israel's Channel 12 television drew attention to the fact that the secret meeting was held only eight days before the general elections to be held on October 27.
Netanyahu had previously stated that he had met with US President Donald Trump multiple times, including on October 18, regarding possible new attacks on Iran.
It had been claimed that the two leaders also discussed, in the first week of October, the possibility of launching a new attack on Iran ahead of the general elections in Israel and the US congressional midterm elections to be held on November 3.
It is not yet known whether a concrete decision was taken at the secret meeting regarding a new military operation against Iran.