The , U. S.  , and its allies believe big missile or drone strikes by , Iran , or its proxies against military and government targets in , Israel , are inevitable, in what would mark a considerable widening of the six- month- ancient conflict, according to people acquainted with the intelligence.
The possible assault, perhaps using high- precision missiles, does happen in the coming days, the people said, requesting anonymity to discuss personal matters. It is seen as more a matter of when, not if, one of the folks said, based on analyses from , U. S.  , and Jewish knowledge.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, spiked more than 1 % to trade above$ 90 a barrel following the news. Oil is up 16 % this year, buoyed by war risk premium since the conflict in the , Middle East , began.
Iran , has threatened to hit , Israel , in retaliation for an assault on a political substance in the Arab investment of , Damascus , last week that killed top Iranian military officers.  , Israel , has not explicitly acknowledged it was behind that attack, though it has traditionally followed a policy of ambiguity on operations in , Syria,  , Lebanon , and elsewhere.
Israel’s Western allies have been informed that the Israeli government and military installations may be targeted, but that civilian facilities are not, according to them.  , U. S.  , officials are helping , Israel , on planning and sharing intelligence assessments, the people said.  , Israel , has told allies it is waiting for this attack to take place before launching another ground offensive against , Hamas , in Rafah in , Gaza, though it’s not clear how soon that operation may begin.
U. S.  , and Western intelligence indicates an attack from , Iran , and its proxies may not necessarily come from Israel’s north, where Tehran’s ally , Hezbollah , in , Lebanon , is located, the people said.
The allies ‘ position is shared by Israeli officials. They’ve also publicly threatened , Iran , that if it hits Israeli soil,  , Israel , will hit Iranian soil.
Earlier on Wednesday Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah , Ali Khamenei , repeated a vow to retaliate against , Israel , for the , Damascus , strike, which he said was tantamount to an attack on Iranian territory.
One of the people claimed that they were unaware of any Western missions planning immediate evacuation and that they were already making plans for evacuation plans in response to requests from Israeli authorities regarding emergency supplies like generators and satellite phones.
While the , U. S.  , has pushed , Israel , for a cease- fire in , Gaza, the Biden administration has also signaled it’s prepared to back the country in the event of an attack by , Iran , or its proxies.
” We also want to address the Iranian threat to launch a significant — they’re threatening to launch a significant attack in Israel”, President , Joe Biden , said Wednesday. ” As I told Prime Minister Netanyahu, our commitment to , Israel , security against these threats from , Iran , and its proxies is iron clad. Let me say it again, iron clad — all we can to protect Israel’s security”.
It’s not yet clear whether a potential attack by , Iran , and its proxies would turn the conflict into a broader, more prolonged war or remain contained, one of the people said. A first-time Iranian strike on an Israeli city would significantly increase hostilities. Last week,  , Israel , scrambled navigational signals over the , Tel Aviv , metropolitan area in preparation for a potential attack.
Israeli embassies have also been considered targets for potential attacks in the wake of the strike on , Damascus , last week, with several missions around the world shuttered.
Iran’s main proxy group is , Hezbollah, which is based in southern , Lebanon , and has been trading fire with Israeli forces almost daily since the war in , Gaza , erupted in October. Since the start of the war, tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from northern , Israel , and southern , Lebanon.
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