By Axios | Created at 2024-10-25 23:24:18 | Updated at 2024-10-26 01:22:26
2 hours ago
Israel began its attack against Iran early Saturday morning local time in retaliation for its massive ballistic missile attack on Oct. 1, two sources with knowledge told Axios.
State of play: Iranian state TV reported explosions in several areas of the country, including Tehran.
The big picture: U.S. and Israeli officials believe Iran will respond militarily, but hope it will be limited and allow the two adversaries to break the tit-for-tat cycle.
- The Biden administration is concerned that a significant Iranian response could lead to an all-out war between Israel and Iran.
Driving the news: The U.S. military boosted its forces in the region in the last few weeks ahead of Israel's possible attack on Iran.
- U.S. officials said the goal was to deter Iran from responding and help Israel defend itself from another Iranian missile barrage.
- President Biden and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin decided to deploy a THAAD missile defense system in Israel with a crew of U.S. military operators.
- That means U.S. soldiers could actively engage in the fighting between Israel and Iran on Israeli soil.
- On Friday, several hours before the Israeli strike, CENTCOM announced that U.S. Air Force F-16s from the 480th Fighter Squadron based at Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany had arrived in U.S. Central Command's area of responsibility.
Between the lines: Earlier this week, the FBI opened an investigation into the leak of top secret U.S. intelligence documents regarding Israel's preparation for an attack against Iran.
- The leak was one of the most serious security breaches within the U.S. intelligence community in years.
- It exposed sensitive U.S. spying on one of its closest allies, and potentially risked disrupting the Israeli attack.
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