US preparing for ‘inevitable’ Iranian attack – media
The US believes Iran will attack American or Israeli personnel in the Middle East in retaliation for an Israeli airstrike in Syria, several news outlets reported on Friday and Saturday, citing US officials. Tehran has vowed to avenge seven officers – including two top commanders from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – who were killed in the bombing of Iran’s consulate in Damascus on Monday.
A senior official told CNN that the US government believes retaliation by Iran is inevitable, and added that the Israelis share this assessment. Officials warned that an attack could come as soon as next week.
According to officials who spoke to NBC News and CBS News, American intelligence suggests that Iran could use “a swarm” of Shahed kamikaze drones and cruise missiles, and that Tehran could target an Israeli diplomatic or consular facility.
The potential attack was discussed during a phone call between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, CNN said.
There have not been any major attacks on US personnel in the region since late January, when a kamikaze drone killed three soldiers stationed at a remote outpost near the Jordanian-Syrian border. American troops shot down two drones near the al-Tanf base in southern Syria this week, CNN reported, citing US defense officials.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has promised that Israel will “receive a slap in the face.” Officials in Tehran also made threats against the US, although Washington claimed it was unaware that the strike on Iran’s mission in Damascus would happen.
Israel has accused Iran of aiding Hamas, Hezbollah, and other pro-Palestine militant groups and has vowed to neutralize any security threats during its war against Hamas in Gaza. Although Israel did not claim responsibility for the death of the Iranian generals directly, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned that “everyone who acts against us all over the Middle East” will pay “a heavy price.”
