Israel is on high alert for a possible direct attack from Iran that insiders say could come as soon as Friday.
The attack targeting Israel Defense Forces positions could include more than 100 drones and dozens of missiles, two US officials told CBS News.
It would be difficult for Israel to defend itself against such a large bombardment, the officials explained — though they also suggested that Iran could launch a smaller-scale attack to avoid escalating tensions much further.
“The strike plans are in front of the Supreme Leader and he is still weighing the political risk,” an adviser to Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said earlier.
Either way, some form of retaliation for the Israeli strike on April 1 that killed seven Iranian military officers is expected imminently, the US experts cautioned.
Tehran has not commented officially on how or when it will strike, though the ambiguity is only stoking fears that Israel’s war with Iran-backed Hamas in the Gaza Strip could become a wider regional conflict, CBS noted.
On Thursday, the US State Department warned Americans in Israel not to travel outside major cities, which are better protected by the Iron Dome missile defense system.
“Whoever harms us, we will harm them,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted Thursday during a visit with troops at an IDF airbase.
