Emily covers breaking news from all over the world. She previously reported on home news and politics for The Telegraph. You can reach her at emily.smith@telegraph.co.uk 1:06pm BST Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for new strikes on Iran as he faces growing pressure before next week’s Israeli elections.

The Israeli prime minister, who faces probable defeat in voting on Tuesday, ordered his military to prepare for a multi-day bombing campaign targeting civilian infrastructure as well as energy and nuclear facilities.

The mission, slated for the weekend of Oct 10, did not go ahead owing to Donald Trump’s reluctance to reignite the conflict before next month’s midterm elections, people familiar with the matter told the Financial Times (FT).

Mr Netanyahu and Mr Trump have repeatedly threatened a new offensive against Iran, declaring they must “finish” the job against the regime. The renewed desire for strikes reflects growing political pressure on the Israeli prime minister and a last-ditch effort to regain voters’ support.

Opposition figures in Israel have warned that Mr Netanyahu, who is polling poorly, may attempt to restart combat operations to delay the election.

Support for Mr Netanyahu has been dropping in the run-up to this month’s election, according to polls A new poll shows that Mr Netanyahu has slumped to a 12 percentage point deficit behind his main rival, Gadi Eisenkot. Of those asked, 45 per cent believed Mr Eisenkot would make a better prime minister, against 33 per cent for the incumbent.

The Israeli election campaign has effectively become a referendum on Mr Netanyahu’s leadership in the aftermath of the Hamas terrorist attacks on Oct 7 2023.

There has been speculation that Mr Netanyahu may still launch a military operation even if he loses on Oct 27, because he will remain in power as the transitional prime minister during weeks of negotiations to form a new government.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has been on heightened alert since reports of the possible resumption of fighting, cancelling leave for all soldiers until the elections.

An Iranian actor plays Donald Trump as he poses inside a mock prison cell in Tajrish Square, Tehran Reports suggest another wave of bombing would be more intense than the joint US-Israel offensive launched against Iran in February.

Iran has deliberately prolonged peace talks with Washington, in an attempt to weaken Mr Trump politically before the US midterms next month.

Senior Iranian officials told Reuters that Iran was convinced the US president was ready to continue attacks to break the stalemate in the war, which began on Feb 28.

One of the officials said: “Iran is preparing for renewed Israeli and US attacks, not for a deal with America to end the war. The clerical establishment is determined not to give Trump a political victory.”Anna Kelly, the deputy White House spokesman, told the FT that “Iran is in very bad condition, both economically and militarily” and “the United States will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the midterm elections”.

Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, visited Israel on Monday and met Mr Netanyahu.

At the meeting, which took place at Ovda air base in southern Israel, Israeli officials presented an updated target list in Iran gleaned from new intelligence, including so-far untouched civilian infrastructure.

Mr Trump has supported Mr Netanyahu in the run-up to Israel’s elections, calling him “strong, brave and brilliant”.

The US president, who had not publicly championed his ally for months, threw his support behind Mr Netanyahu on Sunday, crediting the “great warrior prime minister” with defending Israel from an array of threats.