Following Monday’s Israeli strike in Damascus that killed senior Iranian commanders, the United States is reportedly on high alert and making preparations for a “significant” attack that could occur within the next week. The attack would target either Israeli or American assets in the region.
According to that source, senior US officials and their Israeli counterparts also think that an assault by Iran is “inevitable” at this point. Given that Iran’s attack could take many forms and could potentially target US and Israeli assets and personnel, the two governments are frantically trying to position themselves for what’s to come.
While speaking on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, President Joe Biden brought up the impending Iranian attack at length.
The person stated that neither country has any idea of when or how Iran might respond as of Friday.
The Biden administration is preparing for the worst-case scenario, which includes an Iranian attack on Israel. This would ensure a quick escalation of the already turbulent Middle Eastern situation. Biden has long aimed to prevent the Israel-Hamas battle from escalating into a broader regional conflict, and such an attack may make that happen.
After months of drone, rocket, and missile attacks targeting US sites, there was a period of relative calm two months ago when Iranian proxies assaulted US forces in Iraq and Syria. On Tuesday, however, American soldiers shot down a drone close to the al-Tanf base in Syria, making it the only exception. Following Israel’s strike on the Iranian embassy in Damascus, the Defence Department claimed that Iranian proxies were responsible for the drone attack.
“We asses that al-Tanf was not the target of the drone,” a defence official said Tuesday. It was decided to shoot down the drone in order to ensure the safety of US and coalition partners, as we were unable to instantly identify the target.
Following Monday’s Israeli bombing on the Iranian embassy in Damascus, this occurrence occurred. However, according to an IDF spokesman who spoke with AWN, the structure in question is not a consulate but rather “a military building of Quds forces disguised as a civilian building.”
Hezbollah is a strong Iranian proxy in Lebanon, and Israel has launched multiple attacks on Iranian-backed targets in Syria, most notably weapons shipments bound for the group. Since embassies are seen as the sovereign territory of the nations they represent, the targeting of the embassy itself signifies a notable escalation.
After Israel bombed Iran’s embassy compound in Syria, killing seven officials, Iran swore vengeance. Among those who perished were senior commander Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi and top commander Mohammed Reza Zahedi of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), as reported by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
Iranian state TV said on Tuesday that at least six Syrian civilians were also slain.
Since then-US President Donald Trump ordered the assassination of IRGC Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020, the most high-profile Iranian target slain since then has been Zahedi, a former commander of the IRGC’s ground forces, air force, and deputy commander of its operations.
The US has warned Iran against attempting to attack American assets and has promptly informed Iran that the Biden administration was not involved in or aware of Monday’s attack on the embassy.
The United States was not involved in the strike and was unaware of it in advance, according to a National Security Council spokesperson who talked with AWN earlier this week.
The United States has cautioned Iran against using the Israeli attack in Damascus as “a pretext to attack US personnel and facilities,” according to a spokeswoman from the State Department who talked to AWN on Friday.
According to the spokeswoman, the warning was conveyed in reaction to a communication from Iran. It was unclear what else Iran may have conveyed to the US in its original message, but according to a senior administration official, Iran blamed the US for the Damascus strike.
According to Mohammad Jamshidi, Iran’s deputy chief of staff, “in a written message, the Islamic Republic of Iran warns US leadership not to get dragged in Netanyahu’s trap for US: Stay away so you won’t get hurt.” This information was shared on Friday afternoon. He went on to say that the United States has subsequently asked Iran not to attack American infrastructure.
The State Department spokeswoman informed AWN that they got a message from Iran regarding Jamshidi’s article, as Iran had already said publicly. Our response was a strong warning to Iran not to exploit this situation to launch an attack on American soil. We never even “asked.”
The United States has warned Iran, according to a senior administration official, to “don’t think about coming after us.”
The US message’s transmission to Iran was not elaborated upon by the State Department official.
Both American and foreign embassies and consulates around the world are held in high regard by the US government. Attaining an embassy is like betrayal of the nation it stands for, says the United States Department of State.
The United States believes that Israel was responsible for the airstrike, according to Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh’s statement on Tuesday.
We also believe that there were a small number of senior IRGC officials present. “At this time, I am unable to confirm the identities, but that is our preliminary assessment,” Singh stated.
After the October 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas—backed by Tehran—killed over 1,200 people and took over 200 hostage, Israel stepped up its military campaign against Iran and its regional proxies.
In the besieged territory of Gaza, the Ministry of Health reports that more than 32,800 people have been murdered, extensive destruction has been caused, and over 1 million people are on the verge of a man-made famine as a result of Israel’s following conflict.
