U.S.-Iran Escalation: Return of Refueling Planes and Netanyahu Intensifies Communications with Trump

SadaNews - Israel is preparing for the potential escalation between the United States and Iran, both politically and on the ground, following strikes exchanged between Washington and Tehran last night. The United States has started to return refueling planes to the region, amid direct communications between Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump and Israeli estimates that the confrontation might last several days. Israeli public broadcasting authority ('Kan 11') reported on Wednesday evening that the United States has begun, in recent hours, to send refueling planes back from Europe to the region, having withdrawn them in recent weeks following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran, with plans for them to return to bases in the Eastern Mediterranean and in Israel. According to the report, a high state of alert prevails in Israel, where the Chief of Staff of the Israeli army, Eyal Zamir, held discussions and situation assessments at the Ministry of Defense headquarters in Tel Aviv over the past day, with the participation of senior military leaders, including officials from military intelligence, the air force, and the operations division. The report noted that these discussions included direct communication with senior officials in the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) and the Pentagon, as Israel monitors developments in the region and prepares both defensive and offensive measures. 'Kan 11' quoted Israeli sources as saying that any Iranian attack towards Israel "will inevitably lead to a strong Israeli response," pointing out that, unlike the previous round where the United States prevented a wide Israeli attack, "this time it seems that the American president also understands that the Iranians only want to buy time." At the same time, the report emphasized that there is no change, at this stage, in the instructions from the Israeli Home Front Command, despite the state of alert and ongoing monitoring of developments in the region. The Israeli state of alert comes amidst Trump's threats to continue attacks on Iran, with estimates in Tel Aviv indicating that the exchange of strikes between Iran and the United States currently focuses on the Strait of Hormuz. According to 'Kan 11', Trump and Netanyahu are engaged in 'direct dialogue' regarding the developments, while Israeli sources state that the Israeli position in these talks is based, as they express it, on the saying: "We told you that the Iranians cannot be trusted." Israel estimates that the United States may carry out consecutive attacks in Iran over several days. From Netanyahu's perspective, as presented in the report, he reiterates that there is "additional action that needs to be completed in Iran," including dealing with the stockpile of enriched uranium. The report noted that Trump expressed doubts today about the feasibility of executing a ground operation, claiming that "the United States is the only one capable of doing that." According to the report, there had been previous reports about the possibility of a joint U.S.-Israeli operation to extract materials from three different nuclear sites in Iran. Israel views the U.S.-Iran escalation as a new test for the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran and an opportunity to reiterate the Israeli position that Iran is only seeking to buy time, while Tel Aviv maintains its threat of a wide response if Iranian attacks extend to Israel.