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U.S. military tanker and cargo aircraft were spotted on February 23 at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, with Hebrew media reporting that they arrived a day earlier.
There was no comment from Israeli authorities regarding the American military deployment at Israel’s main civilian airport, and it is unclear if the aircraft are here temporarily as part of a stopover.
A photo posted to social networks shows at least two KC-135 Stratotanker at Ben Gurion Airport. One of them with the tail number “58-0052” was reportedly deployed from Morón Air Base in Spain, to Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar before heading to Israel.
According to the Military Air Tracking Alliance, a team of about 30 open-source analysts that routinely analyzes military and government flight activity, more than 85 fuel tankers and over 170 cargo planes have headed into the region since mid-February, as U.S. President Donald Trump considers whether to take possible military action against Iran.
The surprise appearance of the American military aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport came just a few days after Axios reported that the U.S. and Israel are planning a weeks-long attack on the Islamic Republic.
The Israeli Air Force was limited by its small tanker fleet during the 12-day war with Iran last June. It only operates seven dated KC-707-300s capable of refueling its fighter jets. Thus, if Israel is planning to join a U.S. attack on Iran, it would make a lot of sense for American tankers to provide support, allowing more Israeli fighter jets to participate.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a speech to the Knesset plenum that Israel has never been stronger than it is now.
“The pact with the United States has never been closer,” Netanyahu said.
In what appears to be a warning to Iran, the premier stressed that the personal ties between himself and Trump, and between the Israeli and U.S. militaries, have also never been better. At the same time, he said, “we are in very complex and challenging times.”
If the Iranian regime “makes perhaps the most serious mistake in its history,” Netanyahu warned, “and attacks Israel, we will respond with strength that it can’t even imagine.”
Separately, AFP reported, citing an American official, that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio may push back a trip to Israel in which he is expected to speak to Netanyahu about potential strikes on Iran
“Secretary Rubio is still planning to travel to Israel but the schedule remains subject to change,” the official told the news agency.
The deployment of the U.S. military aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport, Netanyahu’s latest warning, and the delay of Rubio may be all signs of a near attack on Iran by not just the U.S., but also Israel.
While Israel has so far maintained that it would only respond to an attack by Iran, Netanyahu could easily justify joining a U.S. attack on the Islamic Republic as a pre-emptive move. On the other side, everything suggests that Tehran is expecting an attack by both countries.
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