Israel is willing to join the United States in striking Iran should US President Donald Trump request it, sources in Jerusalem told the New York Post on Thursday.
“We’re willing to do it again, if needed,” one source said.
“We’ve proved that we stand with the US. I’m not sure it will be of interest to the US that Israel will join on this - but, you know, we realize that we need to stretch our muscles.”
Also on Thursday, IDF officials told The Jerusalem Post that Israel was not planning to be drawn into the US-Iran exchanges at this time, though they said the military is ready for any eventuality.
Additionally, the officials said that the current assumption is that Iran doesn't plan to drag Israel into the conflict, with no expected Iranian strikes in the near future.
US, Iran renewed strikes this week
According to US Central Command (CENTCOM), the renewed strikes came in response to Iran's attempts to "impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway."
On Wednesday, Trump said he felt that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Iran was nullified following overnight strikes between the US and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz.
"To me, I think it's over," he said at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, in comments to the press.
Trump also stated he felt the US had "wasted a lot of time" negotiating with Iran, and he did not wish to continue talks.
