This could be a major new escalation in the Middle East conflict. American intelligence expects a massive strike by Iran against Israel, using missiles or drones, according to several American media including the press agency Bloomberg. The attack could occur in the coming days, the question being rather “of knowing when and not if it will happen”, affirms the news agency, from American and Israeli intelligence sources. Israel has promised to retaliate if such a scenario were to take place.
According to the American media Axios, “the top American military commander in charge of the Middle East is expected to visit Israel this Thursday, April 11, to coordinate around a possible Israeli attack against Iran and its proxies.” American General Erik Kurilla is expected to meet Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as well as IDF officers. This fear comes as Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, assured Wednesday that Israel would be “punished” after a deadly attack attributed to it on April 1 in Syria.
Iranian retaliation
This strike destroyed the Iranian consulate in Damascus and left 16 dead, including seven members of the Revolutionary Guard Corps, the ideological army of the Islamic Republic, according to an NGO. The attack also killed Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a top general in Iran’s Quds Force, responsible for Iran’s military operations in Lebanon and Syria. According to the media Axios, there had not been such a significant attack against an Iranian general since the assassination of Qassem Soleimani by the United States in 2020.
Tehran had already promised to respond to this strike which further exacerbated regional tensions against a backdrop of war in the Gaza Strip between Israel and the Palestinian movement Hamas, supported by Iran. For his part, the Israeli Defense Minister warned in recent days, during a visit to the Iron Dome air defense unit: “Anyone who tries to attack us will face a strong defense and, immediately after, a strong response on its territory.”
Military installations in the sights?
Still according to Axios, the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Qatar spoke on the phone with their Iranian counterpart about tensions in the region. This call would follow a request from the White House, calling on Arab governments to act for de-escalation in the region with their Iranian partner.
According to Bloomberg, Western officials expect a threat to “Israeli government and military installations”, with civilian installations not expected to be affected. Israel would also have “indicated to his allies that he was waiting for this attack to take place before launching a new ground offensive against Hamas in Rafah.
“Unwavering” American support
Faced with the Iranian threat to Israel, American President Joe Biden, who takes the threat very seriously, reaffirmed on Wednesday his “unwavering” support for Tel Aviv. “As I told Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu, our commitment to the security of Israel, in the face of these threats from Iran and its allies, is unwavering,” he added. “We will do everything we can to protect Israel’s security,” Joe Biden continued.
The comment comes at a time of strong tension between the American president and the head of the Israeli government, Joe Biden having for example publicly judged that Benjamin Netanyahu was making a “mistake” in the way the military operation in Gaza was managed.