Trump building political legitimacy for potential attack on Iran - The Times

Israel is preparing for the possibility that Iran may miscalculate and launch an attack involving hundreds of missiles, Channel 14 reported, citing a senior Israeli official.

The report came shortly after a new US THAAD aerial defense battery was supplied to Israel amid President Donald Trump's threats of military action against Iran unless it agrees to a nuclear deal.

An extremely heavy American military cargo plane, a C-5M Super Galaxy, landed at Israel's Nevatim airbase in the south of the country on Saturday.

"The additional battery that landed here is part of our basket of operations with Americans," the Israeli official told Channel 14. "The defense cooperation between Israel and the Americans is going to another level, it is the best ever."

"Trump's deadline for the Iranians is about a month away - everything is on the table," the official added, referring to reports that the US president has set a two-month deadline for Iran in his March letter to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Last year, Iran hit Israel with missile salvos in April and October. The attacks were mostly repelled thanks to the US military and their allies. Israel, in turn, launched a direct attack on Iran on Oct. 26, knocking out much of its air defenses.

Iran has since vowed to launch a third attack against Israel, dubbed Operation True Promise 3.

Iran's Press Supervisory Board has officially warned ultra-hardline Kayhan newspaper, managed by Khamenei's representative, for its weekend calls to assassinate Trump in retaliation for the 2020 killing of Soleimani, calling it an act against national interests.

"The board has issued an official warning to the editor-in-chief of a newspaper for violating the Article 6 of the Press Law, which explicitly prohibits the publication of content against the security, dignity, and interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran, whether domestically or abroad," a statement by the Board said without naming Kayhan.

The Press Supervisory Board "commended the responsible and astute conduct of the country’s media managers in safeguarding national interests, informing public opinion, and fulfilling their media mission, but emphasized the need to observe specific security considerations and national interests in confronting the global arrogance, as well as taking into account the enemy's cognitive and hybrid warfare against Iran."

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that Washington can only dream of an agreement with Iran similar to the 2003 deal with Libya.

His comments came after Republican Senator Tom Cotton said the deal President Trump wants with Iran would be one that neutralizes Tehran's threat completely.

"He prefers a deal like Libya cut with the United States in 2003," Cotton said in an interview posted on X, alluding to Qaddafi's giving up of all WMDs.

Araghchi also said that “no round of negotiations with the United States has been held so far."

“We have expressed our position; we believe in diplomacy and negotiations, but only indirectly.”

Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz has released a document which he says is a transcript of intercepted communications revealing Iran's alleged support for Hamas.

The document claims to show a direct connection between Iran and Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar and Muhammad Deif, with the two demanding $500 million from Iran's Quds Force commander for their operations aimed at Israel’s destruction.

"Iran is the head of the snake and despite all its denials, even these days it finances and promotes terrorism in all sectors – from Gaza, through Lebanon, Syria, Judea and Samaria and now also against the Houthis in Yemen under the banner of the desire to destroy Israel," Katz said on Sunday.

"Israel will do everything to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and will continue to strike its proxies in the region until the Iranian axis of evil is crushed and toppled," he added.

Tehran has decided against direct talks with Washington in response to US President Donald Trump's letter to Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the Iranian parliament's deputy speaker said on Sunday.

"Our opposition to direct negotiations was due to the US's breach of commitments in the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action)," Hamidreza Hajibabaei said referring to Trump's 2018 withdrawal from the nuclear deal.

"The decision to hold indirect negotiations is also a response to America's bullying," Iranian media quoted Hajibabaei, during a meeting with Khalid al-Mawali, the speaker of Oman's parliament in Tashkent.

He added that Iran expects sanctions to be lifted through indirect negotiations.

This comes as Trump said he preferred direct talks with Iran, avoiding intermediaries in its negotiations with Iran to reach a nuclear deal.

“I think it’s better if we have direct talks,” he said. “I think it goes faster, and you understand the other side a lot better than if you go through intermediaries. They wanted to use intermediaries. I don’t think that’s necessarily true anymore,” Trump told reporters on Thursday.