Trump and Netanyahu clash in 'dramatic' secret phone call over striking Iran as failed plot to topple Tehran regime is exposed

By PHILLIP NIETO, US POLITICAL REPORTER and ELINA SHIRAZI, US SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 13:29, 20 May 2026 | Updated: 13:58, 20 May 2026 Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu clashed over striking Iran in a ‘dramatic’ overnight phone call, hours after a failed plot to topple Tehran's regime in the war's opening days was exposed. The phone call between the two leaders occurred last night in a call that is described as 'lengthy and dramatic,' according to Israel's Channel 12.  The Israeli outlet notes that Netanyahu increasingly doubts that further negotiations with Tehran will produce a peace deal and wants to resume military strikes.  Trump, meanwhile, wants to push harder for an agreement in which Iran abandons its nuclear weapons program before any return to war. The discussion came hours after the New York Times revealed that Israel, with Trump's approval, went into the war with an 'audacious' plan to install hardline former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iran's new leader after Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the opening strikes.  The plot collapsed on day one when Ahmadinejad was wounded by an Israeli strike on his Tehran home meant to free him from house arrest, and he hasn't been seen since. Ahmadinejad, who had fallen out with the Ayatollah, was known during his 2005 to 2013 presidency for calling to 'wipe Israel off the map.' He also backed Tehran's nuclear program, and violently crushed civilian dissent. ‘The failed plans for Ahmadinejad just further proves that there is no good leader within the current ranks of their government. There is no Delcy Rodriguez in Iran,' a US official involved in the US-Iran negotiations told the Daily Mail. The phone call between the two leaders occurred last night in a phone call that is described as 'lengthy and dramatic' An oil tanker burns after being hit by an Iranian strike in the ship-to-ship transfer zone at Khor al-Zubair port near Basra, Iraq, late Wednesday, March 11 The New York Times revealed that Israel, with Trump's approval, went into the war with an 'audacious' plan to install hardline former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iran's new leader after Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed A close associate of Ahmadinejad told the New York Times that the US wanted the former Iranian president to 'play a very important role' in the country's leadership.  The US viewed him as a potential parallel to Delcy Rodriguez, who took power in Venezuela after US forces seized Nicolas Maduro and has since worked closely with the Trump administration. Ahmadinejad believed that the strike as an attempt to free him, and that Washington viewed him as capable of leading Iran, according to the associate. The strike on his property destroyed a security outpost near Ahmadinejad's home. Days later news outlets reported that the former Iranian president had survived the bombing but that his 'bodyguards' were killed.  It turns out the bodyguards were actually members of the regime's Revolutionary Guard Corps who had been tasked with guarding Ahmadinejad but also holding him under house arrest.  Following their deaths from the Israeli strike, Ahmadinejad became 'disillusioned' with the regime change plan and cut off communication with the west, according to the Times. Israeli strikes on the war's first day killed Ayatollah Khamenei at his Tehran compound and wiped out a meeting of senior Iranian officials.  Some of the officials killed in the Israeli strike had been identified by the White House as more willing to negotiate with the US than the current hardline regime. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.