Tensions between the United States and Iran have escalated sharply, with senior officials and analysts warning that a large-scale military confrontation could erupt within days and last for weeks, even as diplomatic talks continue, US-based news agency Axios reported.
The agency quoted former Israeli Military Intelligence chief Amos Yadlin as saying on Wednesday that the likelihood of conflict has risen significantly.
“Last week I allowed myself to fly to the Munich Security Conference. I would think twice about flying [abroad from Israel] this weekend,” he told Channel 12, a day after a second round of nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran in Geneva.
“We are much closer than we were before, but I remind you — a superpower does not go to war in a matter of days. There is a diplomatic path that must be exhausted,” Yadlin said.
He added that while “many oppose the attack” and “the Pentagon is not clear what they want it to achieve,” the US president appears determined.
“The statement that all options are on the table is based on a credible military threat, which comes alongside the preparations off the coast of Iran and in the skies”.
According to Axios, US officials believe that if military action is launched, it would not be limited or symbolic but instead a sustained, multi-week campaign.
A White House official was quoted as putting the chances of a strike in the coming weeks at 90 percent.
A senior adviser to US President Donald Trump said Trump “is getting fed up”. While some in his circle are urging caution, the adviser added, “Some people around him warn him against going to war with Iran, but I think there is a 90% chance we see kinetic action in the next few weeks”.
The report further said the operation would likely be conducted jointly with Israel and could be larger than last year’s 12-day Israeli-led bombing campaign targeting Iranian facilities.
Israeli officials also signalled preparations for possible hostilities. Two officials told the outlet that Israel is preparing for war to break out “within days,” and is advocating an operation that could threaten Iran’s ruling regime.
Likud lawmaker Boaz Bismuth, who chairs the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said Israel faces “challenging days”.
“There is no citizen of Israel who doesn’t ask himself several times a day ‘when will the Iran conflict happen?'” he said, adding that both the public and authorities are preparing for multiple scenarios.
EXPLOSIONS HEARD NEAR TEHRAN
The latest war threat perception has come as a fire broke out Wednesday in Parand, Tehran province, sending thick smoke into the sky, Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB reported.
Videos on social media showed a large plume of dark smoke rising above the area. There were no immediate reports of casualties or significant damage.
State media later cited the Parand Fire Department as saying the smoke was caused by reeds burning along the riverbank.
Firefighters were deployed and efforts to extinguish the blaze were underway.
DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS UNDERWAY DESPITE TENSIONS
Despite the mounting rhetoric, diplomatic efforts remain underway. Iran said after Tuesday’s Geneva talks that both sides had agreed on “guiding principles” aimed at avoiding conflict.
However, US Vice President JD Vance said Tehran had yet to acknowledge all of Washington’s red lines. He told Fox News that discussions had gone “well” in some respects, but added, “in other ways, it was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through”.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright reinforced Washington’s stance, warning that the US is determined to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
“They’ve been very clear about what they would do with nuclear weapons. It’s entirely unacceptable,” he said in Paris during meetings linked to the International Atomic Energy Agency. “So one way or the other, we are going to end, deter Iran’s march towards a nuclear weapon”.
US ARMADA DISPATCHED TO MIDDLE-EAST
Open-source flight tracking data showed dozens of US fighter jets, including F-22s, F-35s and F-16s, moving toward the Middle East, alongside refuelling aircraft.
Meanwhile, Iranian media reported that Tehran and Russia will conduct joint naval drills in the Sea of Oman and northern Indian Ocean, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have launched exercises in the Strait of Hormuz.
The rapid military build-up on both sides has deepened fears that the region may be on the brink of a broader war, with potentially far-reaching consequences.
