Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has asserted that his country is\nready to respond \u201cwith great force\u201d if attacked by Iran. This\ndeclaration comes after hostilities have flared up again between his\nclose ally, the United States, and Iran.<\/p>\n
US military forces have been striking Iran-related targets since the\nend of last week, with Tehran targeting US military positions in various\nregions of the Middle East in retaliation. So far, Israel has not been a\ntarget of Iranian retaliatory strikes.<\/p>\n
As reported by AFP on Wednesday (2\/9\/2cap), Katz stated that Israeli\nforces are prepared for the possibility of new attacks from Iran during\nthe major Jewish holidays, which begin in mid-September.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt this moment, they [Iran] are launching attacks against various\nregions in this area, except against us,\u201d Katz said during a conference\norganised by two leading Israeli media outlets, Ynet and Yedioth\nAhronoth, on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there is a possibility they will attack us. We are ready to face\nit from a defensive standpoint,\u201d the Israeli Defence Minister\nemphasised.<\/p>\n
If Iran launches an attack, Katz stated, Israel will \u201crespond with\ngreat force, independently without depending on any other party.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOur aircraft are ready to take off,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Iran launched a series of attacks against various US\nmilitary positions throughout the Middle East, in response to\nlarge-scale bombings by American forces against its territory.<\/p>\n
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced attacks on US\nbases in Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Erbil in\nIraq.<\/p>\n
This represents the most intense exchange of attacks in recent weeks,\nas the conflict, which has been ongoing for six months, continues to\ndrag on.<\/p>\n
Israel, which began the war alongside the US last February, has not\nbeen militarily involved since US President Donald Trump reached a\nfragile ceasefire agreement in April.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey enjoy launching attacks on Jewish holidays because they hate\nJews. Look at the various events that have occurred in the past.\nHowever, we are ready both defensively and offensively, in coordination\nwith the United States regarding this matter,\u201d Katz said in his\nstatement.<\/p>\n
Iran, whose leaders are staunchly anti-Israel and support armed\nmilitants such as Hamas, constitutionally recognises the Jewish\ncommunity within its borders, which is estimated to number in the\nthousands.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/us-iran-tensions-escalate-israel-prepared-to-retaliate-if-attacked-1788347699", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }