The Trump administration plans to strike Iran after next week’s US midterm elections in an operation expected to use Massive Ordnance Air Blast bombs as aircraft move into position, Newsmax reported, citing current and former officials. The report comes as at least 10 US military transport planes, including C-17 flights from Fort Bliss in Texas, landed at Ovda and Nevatim air bases in southern Israel over the past day to deliver an additional Patriot missile defense system, while transport aircraft also arrived at bases in Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
President Donald Trump has not made a final decision on authorizing the strikes, according to The Wall Street Journal and the Associated Press, which reported that Washington has warned Gulf Arab states to prepare for a “short, intense” post-election campaign and potential Iranian retaliation against regional energy infrastructure. Separately, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has requested Trump’s approval to strike previously unauthorized Iranian energy facilities as soon as possible, Israel’s Kan 11 reported, as US and Israeli commanders coordinate plans for a potential weeklong wave of attacks on Iranian leadership, nuclear sites and infrastructure.