Trump Briefs Netanyahu on Gulf Strikes as Iran Plot Emerges

President Donald Trump called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday to update him on American operations in the Gulf, Netanyahu's office said. The call came after Iran reported fresh US strikes in the region.

"As part of the continuous contact between the two, President Trump updated the Prime Minister on American moves in the Gulf," the Israeli leader's office posted on X. A US official confirmed the call occurred without providing further details.

Netanyahu also raised alarm about Turkey. He accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his associates of making statements "against the existence of the State of Israel" and insisting on security zones along Israel's borders, according to the X post. Erdogan on Tuesday rejected those claims as "disinformation." On Monday, Netanyahu urged the United States not to sell F-35 fighter jets to NATO ally Turkey, arguing it would upset the regional power balance.

The call unfolded as tensions between Trump and Netanyahu have mounted over the handling of the war with Iran. The conflict has cost Trump politically, with oil and consumer goods prices surging during the campaign. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing anonymous sources, that Israel had told the US its intelligence detected a new Iranian plot to assassinate Trump. Iran has openly vowed retaliation since the US killed Qassem Suleimani in 2020. Those calls sharpened after the US–Israel joint strikes that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28.

For markets, the escalation tightens already strained supply routes through the Strait of Hormuz. Crude oil futures have climbed sharply since the February strikes. A sustained disruption to tanker traffic would test production buffers from Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Defense stocks with large US government contracts, such as Lockheed Martin (LMT) and Northrop Grumman (NOC), have historically gained during sustained Middle East operations. The WSJ report on an alleged Iranian assassination plot against a former US president, if confirmed, would represent a clear escalation in state-sponsored targeting and could accelerate US defense spending in the region.

Netanyahu's office did not disclose what operational details Trump shared. The White House declined to comment beyond confirming the call. The nature of the "moves in the Gulf" remains unclear, the timing shortly after Iran reported new strikes suggests the US is maintaining military pressure.

Oil options pricing points to elevated implied volatility, with traders pricing in a risk premium. A diplomatic resolution that lowers tensions would likely trigger a sharp unwinding of that premium. Any new provocation, especially one tied to the alleged plot, would test supply-side constraints already tightened by sanctions on Iranian and Russian crude. The WSJ report will keep attention on the security dimension, and any official US or Iranian confirmation of the reported strikes will serve as the next concrete data point.