Blinken says Iran could attack Israel in ’24-48 hours’: Reports

CNN Central News & Network–ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has reportedly informed his counterparts from the G7 countries that the Iranian retribution for the killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh could come within 24-28 hours.

Blinken convened a conference call to coordinate with close US allies on Sunday wherein he said the US believes both Iran and Hezbollah will retaliate. He added that the US doesn’t know the exact timing of the attacks but stressed it could start as early as the next 24-48 hours, the sources said.

Blinken also told the G7 nations that the US was trying to break the escalatory cycle by trying to limit the attacks by Iran and Hezbollah as much as possible and then restrain the Israeli response. He also urged the countries to apply diplomatic pressure on Iran, Hezbollah and Israel to maintain maximum restraint. He also added that bolstering the US presence in the area was aimed at defensive purposes.

However, the diplomatic efforts don’t seem to have the desired effect as reports claim Iran reportedly told foreign ministers from Jordan and Lebanon that it didn’t care if the ‘response triggered a war.’

According to the Wall Street Journal report, foreign ministers from Jordan and Lebanon travelled to Iran to placate the leadership in Tehran but they informed them that it was set on retribution and “didn’t care if the response triggered a war.”

Israel too is preparing for the possibility of an Iranian-led attack that would include missiles being fired at Israel over multiple days, Western media reports quoted Israel officials. Though Israel does not have a “definitive picture” of the attacks it will be facing, the government is considering launching a preemptive strike to deter Iran if it uncovered airtight evidence that Tehran was preparing to mount an attack.

However, for Israel to launch a pre-emptive attack it would require its own intelligence on the issue to match up with US intelligence on the matter. Even then, it may choose not to go down that route.