US President Joe Biden's administration is convinced that Iran is going to attack Israel in retaliation for the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this week and is preparing to counter it. This was reported by Axios, citing three American officials, according to UNN.
Details
U.S. officials expect Iran's response to follow the same pattern as the April 13 attack on Israel, but potentially on a larger scale, and may also involve Lebanese Hezbollah.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other senior Iranian political and military officials have stated that Iran is going to avenge Khania's assassination.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah also vowed to retaliate against the Israeli airstrike on Beirut on Tuesday that killed his top military adviser.
According to Axios, the Biden administration fears that this time it will be more difficult to mobilize the same international and regional coalition of countries that defended Israel from the previous Iranian attack.
The attack in April was in response to an Israeli airstrike on an Iranian facility in Damascus that killed a senior Iranian general.
Лідера ХАМАС Ісмаїла Ханійє, ймовірно, було вбито заздалегідь закладеною бомбою - NYT01.08.24, 20:50
Several Arab countries, including Jordan and Saudi Arabia, either helped shoot down Iranian and Houthi drones or allowed the United States and Israel to use their airspace to intercept threats.
On Wednesday, the U.S. intelligence community began to receive clear indications that Iran was going to retaliate, a U.S. official said.
Two U.S. officials said it could take several days for the Iranians and their proxies to coordinate and prepare an attack on Israel.
Блінкен передав Ірану та "Хезболлі" послання після вбивства лідерів ХАМАС - ЗМІ01.08.24, 15:17
Another U.S. official said the Pentagon and U.S. Central Command are conducting preparations similar to those they conducted before the April attack.
According to the official, American military forces in the Persian Gulf, Eastern Mediterranean, and Red Sea are taking part in the preparations.
“We expect a few difficult days,” the official said.