Cartoon by Amos Biderman

Israel prepares for likely retaliatory attack by Iran as tensions mount

Peter Beaumont

The Guardian: Iran has insisted on its right to an “appropriate and deterrent response” against Israel as the Israeli defence minister, Yoav Gallant, told his US counterpart that Tehran was making preparations for a large-scale military attack.

It comes as the US announced it had ordered the deployment of the USS Georgia, a nuclear-powered guided missile submarine, to the Middle East, amid mounting concern over the determination by Iran and its proxies to retaliate for Israel’s assassination of Hamas’s political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran.

With fears that an attack may be imminent, the Israel air force commander, Maj Gen Tomer Bar, issued an order forbidding career officers from travelling abroad for foreign holidays, a day after it was reported that soldiers in Georgia and in Azerbaijan had been told to return to Israel immediately.

Iran’s acting foreign minister, Ali Bagheri Kani, made the comments to his Chinese counterpart on Monday, according to state media.

Earlier, the leaders of France, Germany and Britain called on Tehran to refrain from any retaliatory attacks that would further escalate regional tensions after the killing of a Hamas and a Hezbollah leader last month in Tehran and Beirut.

The call was made in a joint statement signed by the French president, Emmanuel Macron, the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, and British prime minister, Keir Starmer, as they endorsed calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, the return of scores of hostages held by Hamas and the “unfettered” delivery of humanitarian aid.

“The fighting must end now, and all hostages still detained by Hamas must be released. The people of Gaza need urgent and unfettered delivery and distribution of aid,” the statement said.

The rapidly rising tensions have been driven by remarks by Iranian and Israeli officials that Tehran was on the brink of a large-scale retaliatory attack.

On Friday, an Iranian Revolutionary Guards deputy commander told local news agencies that the country was set to carry out an order by the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to “harshly punish” Israel over the assassination on 31 July of Haniyeh.

Underlining the growing risk of a widening Middle East war, Axios reported that the Israeli defence minister, Yoav Gallant, had spoken to the US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, on Sunday when he said that Iran was making preparations for a large-scale military attack on Israel within days.

In a statement on Monday, Gallant’s ministry confirmed the call took place overnight. It said Gallant and Austin had discussed operational and strategic coordination and the Israeli military’s readiness in the face of Iranian threats.

In a statement after the conversation took place, the Pentagon said Austin had ordered the Abraham Lincoln strike group to accelerate its deployment to the region.

“Secretary Austin reiterated the United States’ commitment to take every possible step to defend Israel and noted the strengthening of US military force posture and capabilities throughout the Middle East in light of escalating regional tensions,” the statement added.

The US military had already said it would deploy additional fighter jets and navy warships to the Middle East as Washington seeks to bolster Israeli defences.

The growing fear of an Iranian attack has caused a number of international airlines to cancel flights to the region.

On Monday, Lufthansa said it was extending the suspension of flights to Tel Aviv, Tehran, Beirut, Amman and Erbil to 21 August, adding it would also avoid using Iranian and Iraqi airspace.

The mounting danger of a wider confrontation with Iran and its proxies comes amid a continuing Israeli assault on Gaza, where officials from the Hamas-run health ministry have said almost 40,000 Palestinians have been killed since conflict broke out in October when Hamas launched a surprise attack on southern Israeli communities >>>