President Joe Biden will cut short his weekend at the beach and return to the White House on short notice to address rising tensions in the Middle East that could lead to full-scale war.
Biden, 81, will leave his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on Saturday afternoon so he can meet with his national security team just 24 hours after saying an Iranian attack on Israel would happen “sooner rather than later.”
He was due to stay until Sunday but will now return to Washington DC following reports that Tehran was moving more than 100 cruise missiles and drones to prepare for an assault.
President Joe Biden will cut short his weekend at the beach and return to the White House to deal with rising tensions in the Middle East that could lead to a full-scale war.
The Pentagon has already moved aircraft carriers to the Red Sea amid fears of a full-scale war and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, today to tell him that he has the “unwavering” support of the United States. Joined.
Austin reiterated “that Israel could count on the full support of the United States to defend Israel against any attack by Iran and its regional proxies.”
On Friday, Biden revealed his one-word message to Iran over its threats to attack Israel: “Don’t do it.”
He also said the United States was committed to supporting one of the nation’s oldest allies, despite simmering tensions with Benjamin Netanyahu’s government over the war in Gaza.
Israeli army battle tanks move in an area along the border with the Gaza Strip and southern Israel on April 2, 2024.
Iran has reportedly prepared more than 100 cruise missiles as part of an “imminent” attack on Israel: Picture shows the long-range air defense system called Arman displayed during an inauguration ceremony in Tehran, Iran, on the 17th February 2024.
Rescuers search through the rubble of a building attached to the Iranian embassy a day after an airstrike in Damascus on April 2, 2024.
Iran has publicly threatened to hit back at Israel over an attack in Syria last week, which Tehran says was an Israeli airstrike on an Iranian diplomatic building in Damascus.
Late last week, the situation deteriorated when reports emerged that an attack could occur within days.
Military officials briefed on the matter told both ABC News and CNN that the United States has observed Iran preparing at least 100 cruise missiles, indicating they could be ready to attack.
ABC also reported that the nation has also prepared a large number of drones that could be used in an attack against Israel.
Pentagon officials said the United States would reinforce its presence in the region and that the USS Dwight Eisenhower would be sent to the Red Sea in a warning to Tehran.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei vowed retaliation following the attack on Damascus, for which Tel-Aviv has yet to take responsibility.