Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that the war with Iran has passed its midpoint and outlined a long-term vision for neutralizing Iran’s stranglehold on global energy markets, including a proposed network of pipelines that would route Gulf oil and gas to the Mediterranean.

Speaking in an interview with Newsmax, Netanyahu said the IDF is currently focused on eliminating Iran’s remaining nuclear capabilities following significant early progress.

“We’ve already degraded their missile capabilities, destroyed factories, and eliminated key nuclear scientists,” Netanyahu said. He declined to give a precise end date for the conflict, but said the campaign is “beyond the halfway point in terms of mission success.”

Netanyahu noted that Iran’s nuclear ambitions pose a threat not only to Israel and the region but to the United States. “Iran has been pursuing nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them to American cities,” he said. “That’s what this war is about — preventing that outcome.”

He pointed to Iran’s recent strike on the Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean as evidence of how far Tehran’s missile reach has extended. “It wasn’t an intercontinental missile, but it’s getting there, about 4,000 km,” Netanyahu said. “That puts much of Europe within range.”

On the Strait of Hormuz, Netanyahu argued that military action alone would not deliver lasting stability. Roughly 20% of global oil exports pass through the Strait, and Iran has repeatedly demonstrated its ability to threaten shipping there. His proposed solution: redirect the energy infrastructure entirely.

“Long-term solutions include rerouting energy pipelines westward, across Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea and Mediterranean, bypassing Iran’s geographic choke point,” Netanyahu said, describing a framework that would strip Iran of its leverage over global energy markets regardless of its military posture.

Netanyahu called on Western governments to treat the Iranian threat with the urgency he believes it deserves, comparing the current moment to years of warnings that went unheeded. He credited President Donald Trump with recognizing the danger early, including his decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal.

“The question is whether the West will wake up,” Netanyahu said. “This is not just Israel’s problem.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)