Iran has prepared missiles and other military equipment for strikes on US bases in West Asia should the US join Israel’s war against the country, according to American officials who have reviewed intelligence reports.
The US has sent about three dozen refuelling aircraft to Europe that could be used to assist fighter jets protecting American bases or that would be used to extend the range of bombers involved in any possible strike on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Fears of a wider war are growing among American officials as Israel presses the White House to intervene in its conflict with Iran. If the US joins the Israeli campaign and strikes Fordo, a key Iranian nuclear facility, the Iranian-backed Houthi militia will almost certainly resume striking ships in the Red Sea, the officials said. They added that pro-Iranian militias in Iraq and Syria would probably try to attack US bases there.
Other officials said that in the event of an attack, Iran could begin to mine the Strait of Hormuz, a tactic meant to pin American warships in the Persian Gulf.
Commanders put American troops on high alert at military bases throughout the region, including in the UAE, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. The US has more than 40,000 troops deployed in West Asia.
Two Iranian officials have admitted that the country would attack US bases, starting with those in Iraq, if the US joined Israel’s war.
Iran would also target any American bases that are in Arab countries and take part in an attack, the two officials said.
“Our enemies should know that they cannot reach a solution with military attacks on us and will not be able to force their will on the Iranian people,” Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on Monday. Araghchi told his European counterparts in phone conversations that if the war spread, the blame would be on Israel and its main supporters, according to a summary of the calls provided by Iran’s foreign ministry.
US officials said Iran would not need much preparation to attack American bases in the region. The Iranian military has missile bases within easy striking range of Bahrain, Qatar and UAE.
The prospect of US forces joining the war has increased in recent days as Israel has continued its campaign, and Iran has launched waves of missiles at Israel in response.
It is not clear how much damage a strike on Fordo would do to Iran’s nuclear capabilities or how long it would delay the development of a weapon. Iran’s current stockpile of enriched uranium is also hidden in tunnels at different locations in the country.
Several US officials said that Israel would need US help to more significantly damage Iran’s nuclear programme.
American assistance could include providing air cover for Israeli commandoes who go into Iran on the ground. But, officials said, the more probable outcome is a strike by US B-2 stealth bombers armed with the Massive Ordnance Penetrator, a weapon that theoretically has the ability to bore into the mountain that shelters the underground Fordo facility.