Iran was poised to launch airstrikes against Israel, two senior U.S. officials said, following Israel’s killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon last week.
A senior White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss security issues, said there were indications Iran was preparing for the imminent launch of a ballistic missile attack.
“We are actively supporting defensive preparations to defend Israel against this attack. A direct military attack from Iran against Israel will carry severe consequences for Iran,” the official said.
In Israel, the U.S. Embassy put out an alert calling for all "U.S. government employees and their family members to shelter in place until further notice."
The threat builds on existing tensions across the region, as Israel fights with Hezbollah militants in Lebanon and continues its war in Gaza against Hamas — both groups backed by Iran.
Israel on Monday began a ground operation in southern Lebanon.
An Israeli security official, speaking anonymously, told NPR that Israeli troops entered Lebanon targeting Hezbollah military compounds close to the border. The official said the military is “acting in a limited area focusing on the villages right by the border. Some homes are 100 meters from the border, some dozens of meters from the border, and some hundreds of meters from the border.”
The Israeli ground offensive comes as Israel steps up its overall operations against Hezbollah.
Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon have killed more than 1,000 people in the past two weeks and forced many civilians to flee their homes, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. The strikes have targeted Hezbollah and its weapons, killing Nasrallah and several other top officials, as well as many civilians.
Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel last Oct. 8 – one day after Hamas launched a major attack into southern Israel. Hezbollah describes its effort as an act of solidarity with the Palestinians.
Over the past year, Israel and Hezbollah have been firing most every day across the Israel-Lebanon border. But the shooting remained at a relatively low level until Israel unleashed a much larger campaign two weeks ago.
Iran has not yet responded militarily to the latest Israeli actions against Hezbollah, a group Iran helped found, train and arm for the past four decades.
Back in April, an Israeli strike killed several leaders of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps in Damascus, Syria.
Iran responded by attacking Israel with more than 300 drones and missiles, but nearly all were intercepted by Israel and its allies, including the United States. A few missiles did cause some damage. A 7-year-old girl was severely injured and a military base in southern Israel suffered minor damage, according to Israeli officials.
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