US F-22 stealth jet flies into Israel ahead of war fears as Iran compares Trump to Nazis
US and Israeli forces are preparing strikes against Iran amid fears of war, amid warnings that Hezbollah could target US embassies and military bases across Europe if the attacks go ahead.
The US military has moved ahead with its war-level move on Iran, as a squadron of F-22 stealth fighters was sent to Israel, and Tehran has pushed back against US demands.
Iran has slammed US President Trump’s pronouncements on its nuclear ambitions and described the killing of 32,000 opposition protesters as a “big lie” as a massive show of defiance. Large groups of Tehran’s shadowy Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have massed near the country’s border with northern Iraq in a bid to consolidate power against the Kurdish opposition coalition.
Ahead of crucial Geneva talks on Thursday to prevent an escalation toward all-out conflict, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghai compared Trump to Nazi Joseph Goebbels. He accused Trump and his administration of waging a “disinformation campaign” against Iran, criticised Washington leadership, and said, “All the allegations they are making regarding Iran’s nuclear programme, Iran’s ballistic missiles, and the number of casualties during the January unrest are merely repetitions of the ‘big lie’.”
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US President Donald Trump is ready for confrontation with Ayatollah Khamenei (Image: AFP/Iranian Supreme Leader Office)
He added, “‘Repeat a lie again and again and it becomes the truth’ is a law of propaganda coined by the Nazi Joseph Goebbels.
“It is now systematically used by the US administration and the war profiteers who surround it, especially the genocidal Israeli regime, to carry out their sinister propaganda and disinformation campaign against the nation of Iran.”
US F-22s fly from the UK to Israel in preparation to defend the country from an Iranian missile response if the US attacks with its vast arsenal in the Arabian Sea.
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War Machine – USS Abraham Lincoln in the Gulf (Image: Anadolu via Getty Images)
Trump is believed to have warned of Iranian aggression, so Israel placed its fighter-bomber squadron on high alert at the Hatzerim Air Force Base in the Negev Desert. The entire US Navy’s 5th Fleet has been put to sea in preparation for war as the US virtually vacates its docks in Bahrain as a precaution against Iranian missiles.
Trump said in his State of the Union speech Tuesday night: “They have already developed missiles that can threaten our bases in Europe and abroad, and they are working on creating missiles that will soon reach the United States. They were warned not to make any efforts in the future to rebuild their weapons programme, and especially nuclear weapons, yet they continue. They are starting to do it again.”
F-18 and USS Abraham Lincoln (Image: US Navy/AFP via Getty Images)
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Iran has said all US military bases in the Middle East will be considered legitimate targets, putting thousands of US service members in the region at risk. Intelligence analysis drawn from increased communications “chatter” warns that Iran’s proxy force Hezbollah may be planning revenge attacks on US bases and embassies in the Middle East and Europe.
Satellite imagery showed Iran has begun rebuilding its missile production sites and is doing some work on three nuclear sites attacked by the US in June. Iran has long maintained that its nuclear programme is peaceful. The West and the International Atomic Energy Agency say Iran had a nuclear weapons programme by 2003.
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps get ready (Image: Sepah News/AFP via Getty Images)
Before the June attack it was enriching uranium to 60% purity – a small, technical step away from the weapons-grade level of 90%. Trump said in his speech that at least 32,000 people were killed in the protests, far higher than the estimate offered by activists for the death toll. The US-based Human Rights Activist News Agency has counted more than 7,000 dead so far and believes the death toll is much higher.
Iran’s government, which has long downplayed the death toll in other unrest, released its only figure on January 21, saying 3,117 people had been killed. Separately, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said the US could either try diplomacy or face Iran’s wrath.
He said, “If you choose the table of diplomacy – a diplomacy that respects the dignity and mutual interests of the Iranian nation – we will also be at that table.
Iranian special forces on exercise (Image: Sepah News/AFP via Getty Images)
“But if you decide to repeat past experiences through deception, lies, flawed analysis and false information and launch an attack in the middle of negotiations, you will undoubtedly taste a strong blow to the Iranian nation and the country’s defensive forces.”
Iran and the US are scheduled to meet on Thursday for their third round of talks between Tehran and the West under the mediation of negotiator Oman.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and his team left Tehran on Wednesday afternoon for Geneva, where he will meet with US officials, including envoy Steve Witkoff. If negotiations fail, uncertainty remains over the timing of any potential attack, as well as its mission and targets. The status of Iran’s nuclear programme is another mystery. Trump had earlier said the US strikes had “destroyed” it.
Iranian soldier fired a missile (Image: SepahNews/Zuma Press Wire/Shutterstock)
Israeli sources say they are now confident that US forces are in position and fully prepared for the expected attack – and it now depends on Washington’s decision. One said, “It is possible that the US could launch fairly intense attacks against Iran for a week or more.”
The intelligence warnings also said Yemeni Houthi rebels were preparing attacks on Western shipping in the Red Sea. And an unusual development involves the possible involvement of al-Qaeda in the pursuit of revenge.
IRGC on exercises in the Persian Gulf (Image: SepahNews/Zuma Press Wire/Shutterstock)
The two aircraft carriers now in the Middle East – along with their escorting destroyers – are believed to be ready and prepared to withstand intense attacks for at least several days. More F-22s are in Jordan, and all US bases are on high alert for America’s next move and possible retaliatory attacks. Hundreds of American citizens have fled Lebanon. Protests continue inside Iran.
