The chance of an attack being stopped Iran there is open talk of getting an atomic bomb Israelamid fears that recent dramatic events in the region, which led to the collapse of Iran’s regional “axis of resistance”, will push Tehran to cross the nuclear threshold to protect the regime.
Israel Katz, shortly after becoming defense secretary last month, said the diplomatic, operational and tactical situation for attacking Iran’s nuclear program has never been more realistic or likely.
Katz, speaking before the collapse of Assad regime i Syrianoted how two previous Israeli strikes on Iran this year — in response to ballistic missile attacks by Tehran on Israel, in April and October — made clear how superior the Israeli air force is to even the most advanced aspects of the Islamic Republic’s air defenses. system.
“There is an opportunity to achieve the most important goal – to counter and remove the threat of destruction hanging over Israel. Today there is a broad national consensus and the defense establishment that we must thwart the Iranian nuclear program, and there is an understanding that this is possible – not only on the security front but also on the diplomatic front,” he said.
Former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid called on the air force to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities in October.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said that “by far the most important issue, for the future of this region, for the security of Israel, is to avoid Iran getting a nuclear weapon”.
He said the issue has been at the top of the agenda in talks between the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the President-elect of the United States Donald Trump.
“President Trump made it clear during his campaign that he fully understands the dangers of the Iranian nuclear weapons project,” Sa’ar said. “I am sure that we will be able to work together to stabilize the region, to guarantee the future of the region.”
“Anything can happen,” Trump said in an interview with Time magazine noted the possibility that the United States might go to war with Iran, in part because Tehran had planned to assassinate him. – It is a very explosive situation.
Trump’s transition team is formulating what it calls a “Maximum Pressure 2.0” strategy against the Iranian regime, according to a Wall Street Journal report. While his first administration focused on tough economic sanctions against Iran, his second could involve military action, including the possibility of attacks on nuclear facilities.
One approach, described by two sources familiar with the plan, involves increasing military pressure by deploying additional US forces, fighter jets and ships to the Middle East. The U.S. could also sell advanced weapons to Israel, including bunker-buster bombs that would improve its ability to shut down Iranian nuclear facilities.
Changes in Syria, Lebanon and Gaza, as well as expectations of the incoming Trump administration, have created an unprecedented opportunity for Israel’s leaders to consider such a scenario. A significant part of Iran’s air defenses have been destroyed, air routes to Iran have been cleared and, most importantly, the Iranian threat of a counterattack from Lebanon, Syria and Iran itself has been significantly reduced.
Destroying Iran’s nuclear program with a military operation could give Netanyahu the “total victory” he has spoken of during the past 14 months of war. In 2011, along with then-Defense Minister Ehud Barak, he threatened to attack Iran but ultimately backed down, blaming opposition from Israel’s defense establishment and the Obama administration.
After Trump decided to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal with Iran in 2018, and especially since 2020, Tehran has reportedly accelerated the pace of its nuclear development and has been considered a nuclear-threshold state at least recently. two years.
Iran has repeatedly claimed that it has no interest in acquiring nuclear weapons.
According to international reports, Iran has already amassed enough enriched uranium to make several bombs.
Last week, France, Germany and Britain, signatories to the original JCPOA in 2015, informed the UN Security Council that they were prepared, “if necessary,” to initiate the so-called “snapback” mechanism, which would reactivate any international sanctions imposed against Iran before the nuclear deal.
After reports said Tehran had significantly increased its supply of uranium enriched to 60 percent, and that it could be within reach of 90 percent enrichment, Iran informed the International Atomic Energy Agency that it would agree to stricter oversight of its Fordow facility, where most of the enrichment occurs.
The scope and location of the inspections Iran will allow remain unclear, but the decision to allow inspections indicates Tehran hopes the move will thwart any plans to attack its nuclear facilities.
Meanwhile, there appears to be hope of reaching agreements with the Trump team, fearing the president-elect will impose crippling sanctions aimed at further damaging the Iranian economy and possibly hastening the regime’s collapse.
