Iran readies 100 cruise missiles for possible Israel strike, US says

Amid escalating tensions with Israel, Iran has "readied more than a hundred cruise missiles for a possible strike," according to a report on April 12.

Citing a US defence official, ABC News reported that the US has deployed additional military assets to the region, including ships and aircraft.

Two US Navy destroyers currently stationed in the eastern Mediterranean have been identified as part of the deployment, said the report. The destroyers are equipped with the advanced Aegis combat system, capable of defending troops in the region from ballistic missile threats.

Furthermore, US defence officials have disclosed that Iran has reportedly prepared more than a hundred cruise missiles for potential use in a strike against Israel.

Israel is on high alert amid Iran's public vow to attack Israeli targets in retaliation for the April 1 airstrike on its diplomatic facility in the Syrian capital Damascus. The strike killed at least seven members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including two top generals.

Iran has accused Israel of carrying out the attack and vowed to respond. Israel, however, has not officially claimed responsibility for the attack, but it has for months carried out a number of strikes against Iranian targets across Syria.

Both Iran and Hezbollah, its main ally in Lebanon, have said that the attack will not go unpunished.

Meanwhile, two US officials told the Politico news website on condition of anonymity that Iran is planning a larger-than-usual aerial attack on Israel in the coming days, "one that will likely feature a mix of missiles and drone strikes."

Neither official expressed complete confidence that Iran would manage to strike Israel without provoking a military response from the US, as any attack raises the possibility of escalating tensions and conflict in the Middle East.

"The Biden administration expects Iran's response in the coming days — as early as this weekend," according to one official.