Israeli officials believe the United States is intensifying preparations for a possible return to full-scale military confrontation with Iran, with the fighting potentially resuming within the next several weeks, according to i24NEWS.
Officials in contact with Washington described substantial American preparations underway for a scenario in which high-intensity fighting resumes, saying U.S. planners are already developing operational plans for such a contingency. One Israeli official put it bluntly: "There will be a war. The only question is when."
For now, Israel is largely watching from the sidelines rather than driving events, according to the report. But officials in Jerusalem see a convergence of factors pointing toward renewed escalation, chief among them the collapse of the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran, the limited but ongoing confrontation over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and Iran's recent conduct more broadly. Taken together, the assessment growing in Jerusalem is that these developments point in one direction: a return to open fighting.
The report reflects a rapid deterioration on the ground in recent days. The Strait of Hormuz has become a flashpoint since the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding fell apart, with the United States resuming a naval blockade of Iranian ports and Iran responding with strikes on commercial shipping that have killed and wounded civilians, including an Indian national, prompting India to summon Iran's deputy ambassador. Jordan's army said it intercepted four missiles launched from Iran, and Iran's Revolutionary Guard has claimed strikes on American installations in Bahrain and Kuwait in retaliation for U.S. attacks inside Iran.
This is not the first time Israeli officials have flagged Washington's preparations in similar terms. In May, i24NEWS reported that the U.S. and Israel were engaged in their largest round of preparations since the ceasefire took hold, citing the New York Times, ahead of what was then described as a possible resumption of strikes within days. That episode ultimately gave way to the memorandum of understanding now said to have collapsed.
Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Leiter said earlier this week that Israel stands ready to rejoin military action against Iran if Washington asks, telling CBS's Face the Nation that Iran had violated the core condition of the memorandum by failing to keep the Strait of Hormuz open.
