Iran live updates: IRGC Navy claims attacks on 4 vessels in Persian Gulf

The Israel Defense Forces and the U.S. military have drawn up plans to renew joint strikes on Iran in the coming weeks, two Israeli sources familiar with the plans told ABC News.

The Israeli sources said the strikes would almost certainly take place after the U.S. midterm elections, citing President Donald Trump’s reluctance to further destabilize oil markets in the final days of the campaign.

"Hunting season is open as soon as the elections end and it's obvious that they're not going to wait long," one source said.

The New York Times was first to report on the renewed planning. The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the reporting and the Pentagon declined to comment.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is firmly in favor of renewed action against Iran, but both sources said the decision for joint strikes to resume is “only for Trump to decide.”

One Israeli source did not rule out Israel striking unilaterally should the U.S. choose not to participate, but added Israel would still require U.S. consent.

The plans to renew joint strikes were discussed during Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s unannounced visit to Israel earlier this week, according to one Israeli source, who added that new intelligence was shared between both sides.

Joint strikes would aim to further erode Iran’s economy and build on the ongoing U.S. blockade, with targets to include the petrochemical facilities crucial to Iran’s oil industry, the sources said.

One source also said that striking Iranian nuclear facilities, such as those at Pickaxe Mountain, is a part of the new plans, but added there are no plans to strike civilian infrastructure like power plants.

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One source added that regime change in Iran, and not a negotiated deal, is the Israeli government’s top goal. “The only question is the timing,” they said.

The White House said Thursday that the U.S. would not attack Iran prior to the midterm elections in response to reports Israel and the U.S. had drawn up new plans to strike Iran in the coming weeks.

"As President [Donald] Trump stated, Iran is in very bad condition, both economically and militarily, and the blockade will remain in full force and effect, with oil flowing in record numbers of barrels through the Hormuz Strait," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement. "The United States will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the midterm elections."

-ABC News’ Matt Rivers, Jordana Miller and Katherine Faulders

Saudi air defenses intercepted at least five drones over the Riyadh and Madinah regions on Thursday, a Saudi military spokesperson said in statements posted to X.

On Wednesday, the King Fahd Airport international airport in Damman -- on the kingdom's eastern coast -- was targeted in an attack that killed two people and injured eight others.

-ABC News' Othon Leyva

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy claimed on Thursday to have attacked four vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, accusing the ships of navigating an "illegal route" and "transferring oil cargoes from one ship to another."

The ships were hit while in the north-central part of the Persian Gulf, the IRGC Navy claimed, in a statement published by the semi-official Fars News Agency.

The IRGC Navy also reported that three vessels hit naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday night.

The U.S. military has recently been repositioning personnel at U.S. military bases in the Middle East, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The repositioning of forces is similar to what occurred quietly prior to the start of the war with Iran in February, according to the source.

Asked for comment to an NBC report about the reduction of military and diplomatic personnel in the region, CENTCOM spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins said in a statement, "We regularly move U.S. service members and assets to optimize mission readiness. We do not discuss related movements for operational security reasons. U.S. forces remain vigilant and ready to protect American personnel and interests across the region."

Earlier Wednesday, the State Department ordered the departure of non-essential personnel and family members in Saudi Arabia -- a decision officials say is a direct response to the risk posed by the Houthis.

There have been much smaller posture adjustments at several other embassies in the Middle East — changes officials say are also linked to the Houthi threat and other matters not connected to any plan to resume combat against Iran that the president may be considering.

-ABC News' Luis Martinez and Shannon Kingston