The United States and Israel appear to be preparing for a potential escalation with Iran, as Washington surges military assets into the Middle East, Israeli cities reopen bomb shelters, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads to Washington next week for high-stakes talks with President Donald Trump.
The moves follow nearly two weeks of U.S. strikes against Iranian targets and increasingly aggressive rhetoric from both Washington and Tehran.
While neither country has announced plans for a broader offensive, a series of military, diplomatic, and civil defense moves suggests officials are preparing for that possibility.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Pentagon has quietly expanded its military footprint in recent days, deploying special operations forces, fighter squadrons, aerial refueling tankers, and placing bomber aircraft on heightened alert.
The Journal also reported that approximately 150 additional medics have arrived at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where wounded U.S. service members from the Middle East are typically treated.
The buildup follows the deaths of several U.S. service members in recent Iranian attacks, including three troops killed at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan and another soldier killed in northern Iraq while attempting to detonate an explosive from an Iranian drone.
Israel has also begun taking measures that suggest officials are preparing for the possibility of direct Iranian retaliation.
Israeli journalist Amit Segal reported that the country’s alert levels have reached their highest point, with the Israeli Air Force and Military Intelligence Directorate placed on heightened readiness. Home Front Command personnel have reportedly been told to expect call-up orders, while reservists and recently discharged soldiers have been warned they could soon be mobilized.
Segal also reported that Mossad Director Roman Gofman traveled to Washington roughly two weeks ago to meet with CIA Director John Ratcliffe and White House officials.
Cities across Israel have begun reopening public bomb shelters.
Ramat Gan Mayor Carmel Shama-Hacohen announced his city had reopened all public shelters after a security assessment concluded that “the risk of missile fire from Iran over the weekend has increased and is no longer negligible,” reported the Jerusalem Post.
The southern city of Eilat also reopened shelters and ordered emergency personnel to remain prepared to open additional facilities immediately if needed. Israel’s Health Ministry reportedly has reviewed emergency hospitalization plans with hospitals nationwide.
Despite the moves, there have not been any nationwide changes to Israeli Home Front Command guidance.
The preparations come as Netanyahu is set to visit Washington next week for talks with Trump at the White House.
In recent days, the president has increased his rhetoric against Iran, including pledging that the U.S. will seize Iranian assets to compensate for damages caused during the conflict.
He also vowed to hold Iran directly responsible for future Houthi attacks on commercial shipping, warned that any Iranian attack on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz would result in U.S. strikes on bridges or power plants near Tehran, and told Axios he is considering “a massive attack” that would be “bigger than ever before.”
Earlier this month, Trump publicly threatened to strike Iran’s deeply buried “Pickaxe Mountain” nuclear complex, saying the United States had “eyes on it” and that it was “a possible target for a nice big fat shot right in the front door.”
The site is believed by some analysts to be among Iran’s most heavily fortified nuclear facilities.
Asked about Israel’s potential role in any upcoming attack, Trump said the Jewish state “would join in two minutes if I asked them to,” while adding that “we don’t need anybody.”
Iran has continued issuing threats of its own.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned civilians across the Middle East to stay at least 500 meters away from U.S. military installations, signaling that additional attacks could be imminent.
Tehran has also warned that if Iranian oil exports are blocked, no country will be able to export oil safely, adding that the Strait of Hormuz “will not return to pre-war conditions.”
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also condemned Trump’s proposal to use frozen Iranian assets to compensate victims of the conflict, calling it “an incendiary precedent.”
Despite absorbing 13 consecutive nights of U.S. strikes, Iran has largely confined its retaliation to Gulf countries hosting American troops rather than opening a direct front against Israel.
Tehran has struck Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, and Jordan, all of which host U.S. forces. Although some attacks near Aqaba, Jordan, triggered Israeli air defenses in nearby Eilat, Iran has yet to unleash the sustained missile barrages against Israel that characterized previous confrontations.
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