Iran has insisted on its right to an “appropriate and deterrent response” against Israel as the White House said it had prepared for what could be significant attacks by Iran or its proxies as soon as this week.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the deployment of the USS Georgia, a nuclear-powered guided-missile submarine, to the Middle East, amid mounting concern.
As fears grow of an imminent attack, the Israel air force commander, Maj Gen Tomer Bar, issued an order forbidding career officers from traveling abroad for holidays.
Moreover, servicemen in Georgia and Azerbaijan had been told to return to Israel immediately.
John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, said Iran’s response to the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh “could be this week” but that “it is difficult to ascertain at this particular time, if there’s an attack by Iran or its proxies, what it could look like”. He said the US and its allies were preparing for a “significant set of attacks”.
