- US: Iran may strike Israel this week
The U.S. government fears that potential retaliation strikes by Iran and its allies against Israel could be imminent. The U.S. shares Israel's assessment that this could happen "this week," said John Kirby, the communications director of the National Security Council. He emphasized that this was an assessment by the U.S. side that aligns with that of the Israelis.
"It's difficult to say at this point what an attack by Iran and its proxies could look like," Kirby said. "But we must be prepared for a possible series of attacks that could be significant." For this reason, the U.S. has reinforced its military posture in the region. Meanwhile, Kirby warned that no one wants further escalation in the Middle East.
The U.S. military had beefed up its presence in the region in several steps in anticipation of Iran's expected counterattack against Israel. The U.S., Israel's most important ally, had deployed additional warships and combat aircraft to the region.
After the killing of a military commander of Hezbollah in Lebanon and a leader of the Islamist Hamas, which is affiliated with the organization, in Tehran, Iran and Hezbollah had announced massive retaliation. The external leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in an explosion at a guesthouse of the Iranian government at the end of July. Iran blames Israel. The country has not commented on this so far. Israel, in turn, claimed responsibility for the targeted killing of the military commander of Hezbollah.
Israel's military forces have been on high alert for days. The Israeli Chief of Staff, Herzi Halevi, stressed after a meeting with high-ranking military officials that the army remains in high alert to prepare for both offensive and defensive measures.
- The U.S. government, in alignment with Israel, is closely monitoring the actions of 'The partners' (Iran and its allies) due to rising tensions.
- In light of the potential escalation, the U.S. has been working closely with 'The partners' of Israel to mitigate the risk of further conflict.
