Trump fires Waltz for unauthorized talks on 'attacking Iran' with Netanyahu

US President Donald Trump fired his National Security Advisor Mike Waltz due to unauthorised coordination with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over potential military action against Iran, according to a report in the US media.

According to senior administration officials talking to The Washington Post, Waltz engaged in a series of private discussions with Netanyahu concerning possible strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

These conversations reportedly occurred without Trump’s knowledge or approval and were viewed by some within the White House as a deliberate attempt to shift the administration toward military action against Iran.

The timing of Waltz’s communications with Netanyahu, just weeks before the Israeli prime minister’s February visit to Washington, raised eyebrows among Trump’s inner circle.

Sources say Waltz had gone as far as to discuss operational scenarios and intelligence coordination with Israeli counterparts—moves that directly contradicted Trump’s preference for a calibrated, diplomacy-first approach.

Waltz "wanted to take US policy in a direction Trump wasn’t comfortable with because the US hadn’t attempted a diplomatic solution," according to a source speaking to WaPo.

"It got back to Trump and the president wasn’t happy with it," they added.

The incident also raises questions about Israel and some members of the Trump administration's covert attempts to thwart the current negotiations between Iran and the US over a new nuclear deal. 

The fallout was compounded by what has come to be known as the "Signalgate" incident, in which Waltz mistakenly included a journalist in a secure group chat discussing highly sensitive security matters.

Though no classified material was leaked, the breach of protocol further eroded Trump's trust in his national security chief.

In the wake of the controversy, Trump removed Waltz from his post but simultaneously nominated him to serve as US Ambassador to the United Nations—prompting speculation that the reassignment was more about containment than punishment.

In the interim, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been appointed acting National Security Advisor, marking a notable concentration of foreign policy authority.

The Israeli government has officially denied that any in-depth coordination with Waltz took place, describing their interactions as limited to standard diplomatic exchanges. However, insiders claim that Netanyahu and Waltz had a shared sense of urgency regarding Iran’s nuclear trajectory, and that this may have driven the unofficial alignment.

Waltz's ouster underscores broader tensions within the administration about policy towards Iran and its expanding nuclear capabilities. Some officials advocate for sustained pressure and covert action, while others, including Trump, reportedly remain wary of entangling the US in another Middle Eastern conflict.

Some analysts believe that those in favour of aggression are acting more in the interests of Israel than the US, which many see as contradicting Trump's so-called "America First" foreign policy. 

As the White House reshuffles its foreign policy team, questions remain about the extent of Waltz’s backchannel diplomacy and its long-term impact on both US-Israel relations and the administration’s Iran strategy.

With tensions in the region escalating, the White House is expected to clarify its position in the coming weeks—likely during President Trump’s planned visit to the Middle East later this month.