AXIOS (Barak Ravid) - U.S. and Israel delayed original Iran strike by a week, officials say
The U.S. and Israel originally planned to attack Iran a week earlier than they did, but the opening strike was delayed for operational and intelligence reasons, according to senior U.S. and Israeli officials. Why it matters: The delay gave President Trump another week to choose between the two parallel tracks — diplomacy and war — he had been walking for nearly two months. - 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…