Senior Israeli officials told Axios that in recent weeks, Israel’s military has been instructed to prepare for a possible US military strike on Iran before President Trump leaves office. The officials anticipate “a very sensitive period” before Joe Biden’s inauguration on January 20th.
Earlier this month, The New York Times reported that President Trump reviewed options to strike an Iranian nuclear site but was talked out of pulling the trigger by his advisors. Officials left the meeting thinking a military strike was off the table for now, but the president left other options open.
The Israeli officials told Axios that they expect the US will give them prior notice of a planned attack but fear it may not be sufficient to fully prepare. The officials said that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are preparing for either direct retaliation from Iran or through groups it supports in Gaza, Syria, or Lebanon, all areas that Israel frequently bombs.
In this past week alone, there have been multiple reports of Israel striking targets inside Syria. Israel usually stays quiet on its airstrikes in Syria, but last week, in a rare move, Israel confirmed it launched attacks that hit a wide range of targets inside Syria. The IDF released a video of some of the strikes against targets it said were Iranian-linked. The strikes came after Israel claimed explosives were planted in the Golan Heights in an “Iranian-led” mission.
For their part, Iran is cautious about getting sucked into a military confrontation with the US and Israel during the final days of the Trump administration. Iraqi officials told The Associated Press that Iran delivered a message to its allies in the region last week to be on high alert and avoid provoking tensions with the US.
While Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was traveling in the region last week, a State Department official was asked about the Times report and the possibility of a strike on Iran. The official said, “all options are on the table,” and that the Trump administration “will continue to pursue its policies until it’s not in office anymore.”
Since the Times report came out, the US has moved F-16 fighter jets from Germany to the UAE and sent several B-52 bombers to the region, which flew near Israeli airspace.
The Trump administration is continuing to ramp up its “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran with the goal of making it as difficult as possible for a Biden administration to return to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. Last week, the US slapped sanctions on Iran, and more are expected in the coming weeks.
What is Israel preparing to do? Ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and occupy Lebanon again.
duck & cover.
I wonder what American will be sacrificed to make the attack possible. Trump had said Iran will pay if an American death can be tied to them so someone has to die.
Notice the US “free media” quite calmly encouraging the disgraceful provocative behavior of the US government (yes, it still is!) towards Iran, with NO POSSIBLE motive except again to please the spoiled brat State of Israel.
Was it not Voltaire who said that, if you want to know who controls you, ask who it is you cannot criticize. That is the one big question our leaders and most Americans are afraid to ask. America is BSing itself until it confronts that question. Crap doesn’t just happen, there are real people responsible for the crap…
I live on US land, in fact I was born upon born upon it, but I will not call you a vile name as long as you do not call me an american, for there is no longer any Honor upon its lands; and what great if even a minor activity been undertaken there and abroad for at least time since end of WWII?
Once it was China, Russia and minor petty dictatprs who were note for causing the death of millions but today US has since end of WWII killed many millions mor , eall without proviation or threat of attack by them.
Today I shopped, like millions of others do daily, at the cheapest and least costly stores around, Dollar Stores, not because there were no goods elsewhere, but like those millions of others was trying to get by in an over 50% economy of paycheck to paycheck wage and set incomes.
When I had my goods talleyed up the cashier asked me if I wanted to “Donate to a miliary family thanksgiving”, I said no but I will donate $20 to a person whose annual salary is around 13 less than the lowest paid active military.
When she asked me who that was I handed her the $20 dollar bill.
I know owners and I know they pay minimum wage and only allow enough hours that workers depend upon welfare agencies subsidies to survive, and they dare not complain of conditions because then their unemployment checks will be around 1/3 their old wages.
She called me un-american; “So I said thank you, best complement I had in a long while”.
She kept the $20 though, and who could blame her it was twice her hourly wage @20-28 hours a week.
I would not give a penny to the military because it is already drowning in the taxes we pay for our “defense.”
Israel is dreaming…!
Hard to think of any other country becoming a doormat for another nation, and that too an entirely illegitimate one. Only gonzo Americans are perfectly comfortable for Palestinians paying the price for something they had no responsibility for. I guess Jesus must have told Americans they should pay obeisance to Israel. This is effing nuts!
I wouldn’t take Axios seriously.
It seems that Iran’s only crime is that it exists.