Tuesday, April 9, 2024

US intelligence estimates: Iran won't attack Israel directly

US intelligence sources estimate that Iran is unlikely to attack Israel directly, preferring instead to rely on its proxies closer to Israel's borders, CNN reported.

Iran has promised revenge for an allegedly Israeli strike in Damascus, Syria, last week, which killed Iranian Revolutionary Guards official Mohammad Reza Zahedi, as well as six others.

The sources, which CNN did not name, told the news outlet that Iran does not want to significantly escalate the situation, due to concerns regarding potential retaliation both by Israel and the US.

The report, which contradicts previous US and Israeli assessments that an attack by Iran is "inevitable," also said that Iran is pushing its proxies to launch large-scale missile and drone attacks on Israel in the near future.

The intelligence source added that the attack could take place this week, and that the Iranians have everything in place in order to carry it out, and are waiting only for an opportune time to do so.

Iran also plans to avoid attacking US soldiers, instead preferring to focus on "Israeli interests," the source said. However, Iran does not have full control of all of its proxies, such that there may still be attacks on US soldiers.

Meanwhile, top US officials are debating whether to launch an attack immediately or to wait for the end of Ramadan.