Joe Biden said he expected an Iranian attack on Israel “sooner or later” and issued a final message to Tehran: “Stop it.”
“We are dedicated to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will support the defense of Israel, but Iran will not succeed,” Biden told reporters on Friday. .
Earlier, White House National Security Press Secretary John Kirby said the threat of a major attack on Israel by Iran remained strong despite US-led efforts, including calls to Tehran by Britain and Germany. “Be realistic,” he warned. middle east.
The White House’s comments come as several countries, including India, France, Poland and Russia, have warned their citizens against traveling to the region, and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said his country is “ready to defend itself.” The announcement was made while saying, “There is.” [itself] On the ground and in the air, in close cooperation with our partners. ”
Later, CBS cited two unnamed U.S. officials as saying a large-scale missile attack could occur as early as Friday night, as many countries issue urgent warnings to their citizens about the risk of escalating violence in the region. The Prime Minister of Israel said that there was a possibility that a drone attack could be launched. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes security assessment.
Javad Karimi Ghodoushi, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Iran’s parliament, emphasized the report, saying, “After punishing the Zionist regime in the next few hours, this villain will be able to control the future anywhere in the world.” You’ll figure it out if you try.” Assassinations of key figures in the resistance front will again be punished with Iranian missiles. ”
German airline Lufthansa announced on Friday that its planes would no longer use Iranian airspace, extending the suspension of flights to and from Tehran until Thursday.
Qantas has suspended direct flights from Perth to London because the 17.5-hour flight is only possible using Iranian airspace.
Iran has threatened to retaliate against Israel for the attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria on April 1, which killed seven members of the Revolutionary Guards, including two generals, and the situation in the Middle East is already unstable. There are growing concerns that the situation will rapidly deteriorate further.
Tehran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdullahian said on Thursday that Iran felt it had no choice but to respond to the deadly attack on its diplomatic mission after the UN Security Council failed to take action. Stated.
Kirby told reporters that the possibility of an Iranian attack on Israel “remains a real threat” despite concerted efforts by Israel and the United States to deter it in recent days. Stated.
“We are in constant communication with the Israeli side to ensure that they can protect themselves from these types of attacks,” Kirby said. He confirmed that Gen. Eric Kurilla, the commander of U.S. Central Command, is visiting Israel and talking with defense officials about how Israel can best prepare.
Israel said it was strengthening its air defenses and suspending leave for combat troops.
On Friday, France ordered the diplomat’s family to evacuate and warned nationals of several other countries, including Israel and Lebanon, and Canada and Australia also issued alerts. The United States also restricted travel into Israel for a U.S. diplomat and his family.
In a strong warning on Friday, the French Foreign Ministry advised citizens not to travel to Iran, Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian territories, and said French civil servants were prohibited from carrying out any duties there.
The advisory was issued following numerous media reports that Israel is bracing for the prospect of an attack from Iran, possibly as soon as this weekend.
A U.S. official told the Wall Street Journal that a U.S. intelligence report suggested Iran would carry out retaliatory attacks “possibly on Israeli soil” rather than against Israeli interests elsewhere. He said the attack could take place within 24 to 48 hours.
However, the same report said that an individual briefed by Iranian leadership said that no final decision had been made by the Iranian government.
Analysts had initially speculated that Iran would not rush to respond, but after years of proxy conflict between Iran and Israel, the past two days have raised the possibility of direct conflict between Iran and Israel. There are growing concerns about sexuality.
More recently, experts have suggested that Iran feels that military action is necessary to restore the balance of deterrence with Israel.
On Wednesday, Joe Biden said Iran was threatening “significant attacks” against Israel and that the United States would do everything in its power to protect Israel’s security.
The US president’s comments followed a televised speech by the Iranian leader in which he said the attack in Damascus was tantamount to an attack on Iran itself. “When they attacked our consulate area, it was like they attacked our territory,” Khamenei said. “Evil regimes must and will be punished.”
The Israeli military said it was fully prepared for any attack. Israel Defense Forces spokesman Adm. Daniel Hagari told a news conference that Israel was “alert and highly prepared for a variety of scenarios and is constantly assessing the situation.” “We are ready to attack and defend, leveraging the various capabilities of the IDF, and with our strategic partners.”
According to Israeli media reports, the Israel Defense Forces believes that either Iran or its proxies will most likely try to attack military targets rather than civilian centers, but the Israeli Defense Headquarters in Tel Aviv Some locations, such as Kirya, are located in the city center next to shopping malls, offices, and restaurants.
As Israeli forces continue to battle Palestinian militants in the northern and central Gaza Strip, concerns have been raised about a significant escalation in the Middle East conflict that already involves Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Iraq’s pro-Iranian group and Yemen’s Houthis.
Residents of the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza said Israeli air, land and sea shelling following a surprise ground attack on Thursday left dozens of people dead and wounded and their homes and two mosques destroyed.
