TEL AVIV — A powerful attack on Iran's oil industry, inflicting severe damage on its already faltering economy, or a strategic attack on the infrastructure of Iran's nuclear program — the two are the most likely explosive options currently on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's desk as he weighs Israel’s response to the Oct. 1 firing of 180 ballistic missiles at Israel. 

While deliberating between the two, Netanyahu might also opt for a third more modest operation that the United States could reluctantly support, and one that could avoid igniting a frontal clash between Iran and Israel. This would entail a strike on Iranian military targets or a symbolic but resounding attack on symbols of government in Tehran or in other major cities.

This is Netanyahu’s decision, and it is more consequential than ever. After complete paralysis and depression following the Hamas massacre a year ago, and after much hesitation over the subsequent ground offensive in the Gaza Strip and recently in Lebanon against Hezbollah, Netanyahu is now flirting with dramatic moves of the kind from which he has distanced himself for years. 

"The US elections in less than a month actually encourage him to take a risk," a senior Israeli political source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity.