ISRAEL has carved out plans for a “strategic but painful” attack on Iranian soil, according to intelligence sources.
Now Netanyahu’s war cabinet is simply waiting for the right moment to launch as a fractured Middle East teeters on the brink of war.
Iran and Israel have hurled tit-for-tat threats back and forth for days since Tehran’s unprecedented aerial barrage on Saturday night.
Mostly foiled by Israeli and allied force efforts – including RAF jets – the ambush saw over 300 cruise and ballistic missiles and attack drones launched.
Despite international calls for cool heads to prevail, Netanyahu’s ranks have repeatedly insisted that a retaliatory strike is the only response.
And an intelligence source revealed that Israel’s war cabinet has now agreed their revenge hit should be “strategic but painful”.
A senior US official told CNN that while the strike it is expected to be “narrow and limited”, it will land inside Iran’s borders.
The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) are pacing themselves to “take advantage of an opportunity”, Kaan news reports.
Conflicting reports have speculated over whether Israeli forces will hit Iranian soil directly in recent days.
Such a move would undoubtedly spur on boiling tensions between the sworn enemies as some have asked whether they will aim at an Iranian embassy or proxy group instead.
UK foreign minister David Cameron landed in Jerusalem this morning and said “It is clear the Israelis are making a decision to act”.
He added that the British government is hoping Israel responds in a way that can do “as little to escalate this as possible”.
But Israel doubled down yesterday, warning Iran it wouldn’t get off “scot-free”.
IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said: “We cannot stand still from this kind of aggression, Iran will not get [off] scot-free with this aggression.
“We will respond in our time, in our place, in the way that we will choose.”
Ali Ansari, a professor of Iranian studies and a member of think tank RUSI, told The Sun: “My sense is the Israelis will directly hit Iranian soil.
“If they’re going to do something, they’re not going to go for proxies.
“They have to respond in a way that would be seen by their own public and the government there as an appropriate response[sic].”
PM Rishi Sunak held a crunch call with Israeli PM Netanyahu yesterday and warned the embattled leader that a strike on Iran would make his country less secure.
He warned that a “significant escalation was in no one’s interest”.
And US president Joe Biden, said to privately fear a catastrophic escalation in the Middle East, pushed him to call off all plans for an immediate retaliation on Saturday night as Iranian missiles made their way across the Middle East.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog described the Saturday night ambush – which included over 300 missiles and attack drones – as a “declaration of war”.
He added that it was “time the world faces this empire of evil in Tehran”.
But America has made clear that it will not contribute to a revenge hit against Iran.
Iran holds its annual army parade today, marching sabre-rattling hordes of soldiers down the streets in an attempt at intimidation.
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi said during the sabre-rattling ceremony: “The smallest action against Iran’s interests will definitely be met with a fierce, widespread and painful response against all its perpetrators.”
On Monday Iran warned it would unfurl a weapon “never used before” if Israel does decide to retaliate.
Iranian security chief Abolfazl Amouei said Tehran is “prepared to use a weapon that we have never used”.
It is unclear what weapon Amouei was referring to, but he warned Israel to “act wisely” as it considers its next steps.
The UN has raised concerns about Israel possibly striking Iranian nuclear sites when it does respond.
Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) urged “extreme restraint” from Israel.
He revealed that Iran temporarily closed its nuclear facilities over “security considerations” in the wake of its missile and drone attack.
