Israel is currently conducting simultaneous targeted strikes against military targets in Tehran and Beirut.
In a social media post, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said that its soldiers are operating in southern Lebanon and are positioned at several points near the border area as part of an enhanced forward defence posture.
It further said that Israel is conducting targeted strikes against Hezbollah’s infrastructure. Israel also alleged that Hezbollah chose to attack Israel on behalf of the Iranian regime.
Israel stepped up airstrikes against Iranian missile launchers and factories on Tuesday, and Iran retaliated across the Gulf region, including with attacks on Dubai and Abu Dhabi, disrupting energy supplies and travel.
While the American embassy in Saudi Arabia came under drone attack, Europe scrambled to defend Cyprus, a day after a drone attack was launched against the British base in the Mediterranean state.
Four days into a war, US President Donald Trump said his country has “the capability to go far longer” than its projected four-to-five-week time frame for its military operations against Iran. Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump said someone from within the Iranian regime might be the best choice to take power once the US-Israel campaign is finished.
He rejected speculation that the US is willing to install Reza Pahlavi, the exiled crown prince of Iran’s last shah, in Iran. “As far as possible leaders inside Iran, the people we had in mind are dead. I guess the worst case would be to do this, and then somebody takes over who’s as bad as the previous per son, right? That could happen. We don’t want that to happen.”
Israel, meanwhile, sent ground troops into southern Lebanon on Tuesday and warned residents of more than 80 villages to evacuate as the Iran-backed militant Hezbollah group said it was ready for an “open war” with Israel.
According to reports, the UAE and Qatar are lobbying US allies to help them persuade Trump to reach for an off-ramp that would keep US military operations against Iran short.
Airstrikes by the United States and Israel have killed at least 787 people in Iran since the start of the war, the Iranian Red Crescent Society said.
In its intelligence assessment, the US department of homeland security said Iran and its proxies “probably” pose a threat of targeted attacks on the United States, although a largescale physical attack was unlikely.