U.S. and Israel delayed original Iran strike by a week, officials say

• It also made the final round of nuclear talks in Geneva far more consequential, giving Iran one last chance to make a deal.

Behind the scenes: After the second round of U.S.-Iran talks ended without significant progress on Feb. 17, U.S. and Israeli military planners were preparing to launch strikes four days later — on Saturday, Feb. 21.

• But the go-ahead never came. U.S. and Israeli officials said one key reason was bad weather in the region.
• A second Israeli official said the delay was driven primarily by the U.S. side and was related to the need for better coordination with the Israel Defense Forces.

"The last two weeks have been very back and forth," said another Trump administration official.

• "Some people say it was about the moon or the weather or whatever. But that's bull," the official.
• "There was a weather thing," they acknowledged. "There's no question. And there was a weather issue more in the mind of the Israelis."

Zoom in: The opening strike was designed to hit Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his sons, as well as several gatherings of senior Iranian officials — including a routine meeting held every Saturday, according to a senior Israeli official.

• Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter claimed two separate meetings were targeted, both focused on potential responses to the protest wave sweeping Iran.
• In the week between the original and updated strike dates, Israeli and U.S. intelligence officials grew increasingly nervous that Khamenei would move from his residence to an underground bunker.

Other gatherings that were targeted were also expected to take place above ground.

• The U.S. and Israel wanted to "signal that there was no imminent strike, so that Khamenei and the others would feel safe," one Israeli intelligence official said.
• A senior Trump administration official told Axios there was surprise that Khamenei wasn't hiding underground, but added: "Even if he were above ground, we would have gotten him."

Zoom out: The delay also created space for one more round of talks, scheduled in Geneva for Thursday. Accounts differ on what that meeting was really about.

• One Israeli official said the Geneva talks were intended to let time pass until the new strike date — keeping the Iranians believing diplomacy was still Trump's primary path.

• A second Israeli official said the new strike date was set for tactical and operational reasons, and the talks were genuine. If Trump had seen serious progress in Geneva, he could have postponed the strike again.

Two U.S. officials also pushed back on the characterization that the Geneva talks were a ruse.

• They said that while Trump envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff were deeply skeptical about the chances of a deal, they were not simply going through the motions to deceive the Iranians.

When the morning session ended on Thursday, Kushner and Witkoff came back with a final American proposal.

• It included a demand for a 10-year moratorium on Iranian uranium enrichment, followed by a symbolic enrichment capacity. The U.S. also offered to supply Iran with free nuclear fuel to meet its civilian needs.
• Trump's team, another U.S. official, said was "very explicit about" using military force if the Iranians didn't take the deal.

The bottom line: The Iranians rejected the offer. Kushner and Witkoff reported back to Trump, who then set the wheels of war in motion.

• "There was a concerted effort to negotiate in good faith, including in Geneva. But nothing came of it. And we had our assets ready to go. So the president decided to strike," a U.S. official said.
• "Iran could have prevented this by negotiating in good faith. They didn't."

Go deeper: Two months, two tracks: How Trump chose war with Iran