Israel is on high alert for the possibility of US intervention in Iran as anti-government protests continue in Tehran.
Reuters quoted three Iranian sources, who were present for Israeli security consultations
during the weekend, confirming that a high alert is being maintained in case of any US intervention in Iran but they did not elaborate on what Israel’s high-alert footing meant in practice.
This comes a day after President Donald Trump said that the US is ready to help Iran gain freedom from the government led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Reuters quoted an Israeli source saying that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday discussed the possibility of US intervention in Iran.
Meanwhile, Israel has not hinted at any desire to intervene in Iran amid the ongoing protests.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said Iran was “looking at freedom, perhaps like never before,” and added that the US stood ready to help.
Trump has warned Iran against continuing to kill protesters. On Friday, he cautioned Iranian authorities not to open fire, saying the US would respond if they did. His remarks followed growing concern in Washington over Iran’s handling of nationwide protests.
The United States has previously carried out strikes on Iranian territory. In June, US forces dropped at least six bunker-buster bombs on three sites, including the Fordow nuclear enrichment facility. The site is located deep underground, nearly 300 feet beneath a mountain.
These strikes followed Iranian threats to use nuclear capabilities against Israel during their 12-day conflict and were coordinated with Israeli attacks on Iran’s military infrastructure.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, meanwhile, strongly criticised the United States and President Trump. He accused Trump of having “hands stained with the blood of Iranians” and said the US president should focus on problems in his own country. Khamenei also claimed that protesters were acting to please the US.
Iranian authorities have intensified their crackdown on protests across the country.
According to Associated Press, the nationwide protests challenging Iran’s theocracy reached the two-week mark on Sunday as the death toll in violence surrounding the demonstrations reached at least 116 people killed and over 2,600 others detained, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.
