Israel conducts military manoeuvres in the Mediterranean as tensions with Iran escalate
The Israeli army is preparing for any possible scenario. Dozens of Israeli fighter planes and warships have been mobilised to carry out a series of military exercises in the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea in preparation for different "scenarios" against Iran, in the midst of the latest tensions caused by Israel's assassination of Colonel Hasan Sayyad Khodai of the Quds forces.
Among these exercises, they stressed that the army is continuously preparing and training to deal with "any possible scenario", including "Israeli threats". In a statement, they added that "dozens of aircraft conducted aerial exercises over the Mediterranean Sea to simulate a long-range flight". They added that "the aircraft simulated a long-range flight, refuelling in the air and hitting distant targets".
They also confirmed that the crews of missile boats and submarine fleets had "completed" complex and lengthy training in the Red Sea. In the statement, navy commander-in-chief David Saar Selmi said that "this extended exercise simulates various scenarios, including naval military superiority and the maintenance of free manoeuvres in the region".
These exercises were reportedly conducted during a training exercise called "Fire Fighting Vehicles", which had previously been scheduled to take place in May 2021, following attacks between Hamas and Israel that escalated into violence that lasted for 11 days.
The training coincides with a time of heightened tension between Israel and Iran. Khodai's assassination follows the stalled negotiations on the Nuclear Pact. Since the United States left the agreement during Donald Trump's presidency, negotiations have been ongoing, but have not yet been able to bring about any tangible solution.
Since then, the US has imposed a series of significant sanctions on Iran, but these have not served to halt Iran's nuclear arms race.
In this process, while Israel tries to curb the possible nuclear threat from Tehran and warns that this is an "acute and active" threat, Iran has been increasing its production of enriched uranium, exceeding the limit allowed under the 2015 agreement by more than 18 times. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), during this process, Tehran has increased its total stockpile to 3,809.3 kilos. In this context, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi has visited Israel to meet with Prime Minister Naftali Bennet, according to an official source in Israel.
Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz claimed that "the price for confronting the Iranian challenge globally or regionally is higher than it was a year ago and lower than it will be a year from now", claiming that Iran was working to complete the production and installation of 1,000 advanced IR6 centrifuges. It notes that Iran "continues to accumulate irreversible expertise and experience in the development, research, production and operation of advanced centrifuges".
Earlier in May, the Israeli army conducted a series of joint exercises with the US military in a military exercise dubbed 'Chariots of Fire', designed to resemble a multi-front war. A senior Israeli defence source noted that "US aerial refuelling services were carried out in flight envelopes that can be used by Israel and when Israel chooses to act".
The fact that this exercise was conducted so publicly, openly simulating strikes against Iran, has been seen as more of a warning to Tehran to renegotiate its nuclear programme than a preparedness exercise.
While the conflict in Ukraine has been occupying the world's attention, Iran has been advancing its nuclear programme, under Israel's watchful and harsh gaze. This alleged US participation in the exercise is designed to underline the seriousness of the Israelis' warning to Iran's leaders and send a clear message: any threat coming from the Iranian side will be repelled and defeated.
Americas Coordinator: José Antonio Sierra