And Tehran suggests its response will be non-escalatory. Listen to our latest podcast on how tensions are rising in the region. Iran’s threat of attack is real and viable, White House says – The White House has said that the threat of an imminent attack by Iran on Israel is real and viable. White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby added that the United States is looking at its own force posture in the region in light of Tehran’s threat and is watching the situation very closely. (Photo: US and Israeli soldiers met).

In a wide-ranging update, the White House said it was still waiting on a response from Hamas after the latest round of hostage talks but said it can’t verify the militant group’s claim that they do not have 40 hostages. Mr Kirby also said more than 1,000 aid trucks had entered Gaza in the last few days. Around 40 rocket launches identified from Lebanon, says Israeli military Around 40 rocket launches have been identified crossing from Lebanon, the Israeli military has said.

In a Telegram post, the Israel Defence Forces said some rockets were intercepted, and the rest fell in open areas. It also confirmed two Hezbollah explosive drones that had entered Israeli territory from Lebanon had been intercepted. “Over the last few hours, the IDF struck in a number of locations in southern Lebanon in order to remove a threat,” it added. Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah have regularly exchanged fire across the border since the war in Gaza erupted last year.

Analysis: Iranian Attack is Quite Likely – and Could be Quite Big

Throughout the day, we have been reporting on the threat of an Iranian attack on Israel. The US has warned the threat is “real” and “viable” and, in the last few moments, an American defence official has confirmed “additional assets” are being moved to the Middle East. Our security and defence analyst Michael Clarke has said it is “quite likely” Iran will attack, and the US has been given signals all day that it could be “imminent”. He added he is “fairly sure” Iran will not let go of the deadly strike on its embassy in Syria – which is what sparked the threat of an attack.

“The United States is pretty clear now that something is about to happen, maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow, but it won’t be much further than that, and it might be quite big,” Prof Clarke said. He explained that the US has said it is more likely Iran will launch a direct attack on Israel, and the Iranians do have missiles with the capability to do so. Israel has made it very clear it will hit back if Iran decides to attack, and Prof Clarke said some Israelis would “almost like that to happen” so they could attack some of Iran’s nuclear facilities. US ‘moving additional assets’ to Middle East, says defence official.

The US is “moving additional assets” to the Middle East, a defence official has told Sky News. The move will “bolster regional deterrence efforts and increase force protection for US forces”, the official said. Our US correspondent Mark Stone said no further details have been provided. “That means more military hardware is being moved or will be moved to the region to do two things – try to deter Iran from taking any massive action and also to protect existing American forces that are in the region,” he said. “I think the consensus among experts is that the Iranian will respond, but they will almost certainly respond against Israel directly rather than any American military in the region.

“Nevertheless, what that response will look like and what it will mean in terms of an Israeli response, we don’t know yet.” The announcement comes after the White House said it changed its force posture in the region amid threats of an Iranian attack on Israel. Explained: Why is Iran threatening to attack Israel? Fears of an escalating situation in the Middle East have grown in recent days after Iran threatened to attack Israel. But how is Iran involved in the conflict – and why is it threatening to attack Israel? Firstly, Iran is the biggest backer of Hamas, having provided weapons and training to the militant group in previous years.

It also backs Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen – both of which have been involved in attacks on Israel since the war in Gaza erupted last year. Historically, Israel and Iran have been arch enemies, with both countries allegedly behind a long series of attacks on each other’s interests. Tensions between the two nations have been increasingly stretched since Israel entered Gaza following the 7 October Hamas attacks. But, they became incredibly high last week after an attack on the Iranian embassy in Syria. That’s why Iran is threatening to attack Israel.

Two generals and seven members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard were killed in the strike in Damascus, which Tehran has blamed on Israel. The US military has said it also believes Israel was behind the attack. However, Israel has not publicly commented on the airstrike. Iran has been warned by the US not to use the embassy attack as a pretext to escalate the situation in the region. Israeli officials meet US commander to discuss ‘defensive and offensive operations’. Israeli officials have met a US CENTCOM commander today to discuss the military’s readiness for “defensive and offensive operations”.

Israel’s defence minister Yoav Gallant met General Michael Erik Kurilla at Hatzor airbase this afternoon. “We are prepared in defence, also on the ground, also in the air, we are in close cooperation with neighbours and friends in order to prevent a harm to Israel, and we will know how to respond,” Mr Gallant said after the meeting. General Kurilla then met the Israeli military’s chief of general staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi. In a post on X, the Israel Defence Forces said the pair “completed a comprehensive situational assessment with IDF officials on the IDF’s readiness for defensive and offensive operations in all scenarios”.

“The IDF continues to monitor closely what is happening in Iran and different arenas, constantly preparing to deal with existing and potential threats in coordination with the United States Armed Forces,” Lt Gen Halevi said. Yesterday, Israel’s military said it’s prepared to defend the country and strike back if Iran retaliates for a deadly airstrike on the Iranian Consulate in Syria.

Courtesy: Sky News