The Israeli army says that Iran fired missiles towards Israel

CNN
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Missiles were fired from Iran toward Israel and sirens sounded across the country, according to a statement from the Israeli military.

Earlier on Tuesday, the White House warned that Iran was preparing to launch a ballistic missile attack on Israel soon, immediately raising fears of an all-out war in the region.

In a statement issued mid-morning, the White House said it had “indications that Iran is preparing to launch an imminent ballistic missile attack against Israel,” adding that the United States “actively supports defensive preparations to defend Israel against this attack.”

A senior White House official said in a statement: “Any direct military attack by Iran against Israel would have serious consequences for Iran.”

A source familiar with the matter said that Israel estimated that Iran was likely to attack three Israeli air bases and an intelligence base located north of Tel Aviv.

The source said that the intelligence base in Glilot was evacuated on Tuesday afternoon, and the Israeli army put emergency plans for the safety of personnel in those bases into effect.

The source said that the United States warned Israel of the possibility of an attack within the next 12 hours.

An Israeli source told CNN shortly after the White House warned that intense diplomacy was taking place behind the scenes.

President Joe Biden held a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris and senior national security officials on Tuesday “to discuss Iranian plans for an imminent major ballistic missile attack against Israel,” according to White House press secretary Emily Simons.

“They reviewed the state of American preparations to assist Israel in defending against attacks and protecting American personnel,” Simons added.

After a year of escalating tensions between Israel and Iran’s proxies in the region – including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Houthis in Yemen – any attack by Iran on Israel could push the region towards a full-scale conflict.

American and Arab diplomats are already concerned about what might happen after the expected Iranian attack, including the scale of the Israeli response. One of the main concerns on their minds is the possibility that Israel could use an imminent Iranian strike to retaliate with a strike inside Iran.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said during his speech at the United Nations last week: “There is no place in Iran that Israel’s long arm cannot reach, and this applies to the entire Middle East.”

The United States is prepared to do everything we can to help Israel intercept anything Iran directs its way, similar to how the United States offered its assistance in April, when Iran launched a wave of drones and missiles toward Israel — the vast majority of which were intercepted. Of it successfully. An American official said.

The United States expects an attack from Iran against Israel to be similar in scope and scale to the attack that occurred in April, a US official told CNN.

The United States warned Israel early Tuesday morning Eastern time (midday Israel time) that Iran was preparing to launch an attack, according to a person familiar with the matter. The warning between the two countries came several hours before the White House publicly announced that it had indications that Iran was preparing for an attack.

The official said Iran was in a position to move quickly in the attack. After the drone and missile attacks launched towards Israel in April, many Iranian assets remained in place.

Tensions between Israel and Iran have escalated significantly in recent weeks as Israel intensified its efforts against Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed armed group, and on Monday Israel launched a ground operation in southern Lebanon.

Netanyahu asked Israelis to “stand together” and continue following front-line orders as fears grow of an imminent attack from Iran.

Netanyahu said that Israel is waging a “campaign against the Iranian axis of evil” and put forward specific demands to the Israeli public.

“What I ask of you is two things: First – to strictly adhere to the directives of the front-line command, this saves lives. Second – to stand together,” Netanyahu said in a statement.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that the United States is “closely following events in the Middle East” and is “committed to defending Israel.”

Blinken said in brief statements alongside his Moroccan counterpart: “We are monitoring developments, as I said, very carefully at this moment.” Blinken did not specifically refer to Iran or the potential attack.

The US Embassy in Israel has asked all US government employees and their family members to “shelter in place until further notice” due to the “current security situation,” it said in a security alert on Tuesday.

“This is provided for your information as you develop your own security plans,” the warning read, without mentioning specific warnings about an impending attack from Iran.

This story has been updated with additional developments.