Joe Biden has warned Iran not to launch an attack on Israel, amid reports of an “imminent” missile strike targeting the country.
The US president said his commitment to Israel’s security was “ironclad” and that Washington would do “all we can” to protect it from an attack by Tehran in retaliation for a strike in Syria that killed senior Iranian generals.
On Wednesday evening, Bloomberg reported that US intelligence officials believed an attack on Israeli soil was imminent and could involve “high-precision missiles”.
Speaking at a press conference in Washington, Mr Biden said: “We also want to address the Iranian threat … they’re threatening to launch a significant attack in Israel.
“As I told Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu, our commitment to Israel’s security against these threats from Iran and its proxies is ironclad. Let me say it again, ironclad … all we can to protect Israel’s security.”
A Pentagon official on Wednesday night declined to comment on reports that the US was preparing to intercept Iranian missiles, and to join retaliatory strikes by Israel.
The official told The Telegraph the US government was “aware of Iran’s rhetoric” and that “both Israel and the US take it seriously”.
Foreign embassies have reportedly already begun evacuations in anticipation of an attack in the coming days, after Iran’s supreme leader said Israel “must be punished” for an air strike on an Iranian embassy compound in Syria.
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the strike, which killed two generals and five military advisers on April 1. The most high-profile victim was Mohamed Reza Zahedi, who led the elite Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard in Lebanon and Syria until 2016.
In a speech to mark the end of Ramadan on Wednesday, Ayatollah Khamenei vowed to take revenge on Israel.
“When they attack the consulate, it is as if they have attacked our soil,” he said. “The evil regime made a mistake and must be punished and it shall be.”
Two days after the attack, he said “the Zionist regime” would “receive a slap in the face” in retaliation.
Military targets
US officials reportedly believe any Iranian strike would likely be on military and government buildings, not civilian targets. One source told Bloomberg that an attack was considered a matter of when, not if.
Any strike could escalate the conflict in the Middle East to a direct war between two of the region’s biggest powers.
Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defence minister, has said Israel would respond to an attack with its own strike on Iranian soil.
Speaking to troops in northern Israel, Mr Gallant said Iran would face a “powerful response in its territory”.
“In this war, we are being attacked from more than one front … from different directions,” he said.
“Any enemy that tries to attack us will first of all be met with a strong defence. But we will know how to react very quickly with a decisive offensive action against the territory of whoever attacks our territory, no matter where it is, in the entire Middle East.”
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