Military

WATCH: IDF F-15 Jets Escorted US Bomber in Apparent Show of Force to Iran as Tensions Remain High

TEL AVIV (Sputnik) - Israeli F-15 fighter jets have escorted a US B-1B bomber over the skies of Israel, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Saturday.
Sputnik
The joint flight was another example of “the continued strategic cooperation of the IDF with the United States in the area,“ the IDF added.
The army shared pictures and footage of the escort mission, which was apparently aimed at sending a message to Tehran, given the heightened tensions between Iran, on one side, and the Jewish State and the US, on the other.
Also on Saturday, other Mideast nations joined the American bomber “in support of a Presence Patrol“ in the skies.
It comes as Iranian officials said that Tehran is ready to resume talks on a possible revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or Iran deal, which former US president Donald Trump ditched, reinstating harsh sanctions against Tehran under the so-called “maximum pressure“ campaign.
Ironically, just on Friday, Washington slapped new sanctions on Iran, targeting its drone industry, which, Tehran said, contradicts US claims of willingness to return to the JCPOA.
Israel has been signaling alarm about its neighbor allegedly working to develop nuclear weapons, which Tehran has repeatedly denied, pointing instead to the West’s hypocrisy when it comes to the widespread belief that the Jewish States obtained nukes long ago.
This also comes amid speculation in the Israeli media that the IDF is training “intensively“ for a strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, as Tel-Aviv recently adopted a new defense budget of about $1.5 billion.
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Iran has reported several issues at its nuclear sites this year, which Tehran linked to “sabotage’ attacks allegedly carried out by Israel.
Tensions between the two have been extremely high following the assassination of Iranian top nuclear physician Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, which Tehran said Israeli spy agency Mossad was behind.
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