Tel Aviv [Israel], March 21 : Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz on Saturday said that military strikes against Iran are set to intensify in the coming week, signalling a further escalation in the ongoing conflict.
According to Times of Israel, the defence minister made these remarks during a meeting with top officers at the Israeli military's underground command centre at the IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv.
He stated that the strikes that will take place will be jointly conducted by the IDF and the US military.
"This week, the intensity of the strikes that the IDF and the US military will carry out against the Iranian terror regime and the infrastructure it relies on will significantly escalate," he said, as quoted by Times of Israel.
Katz added that Israel remains committed to continuing its offensive operations against Iran and weakening the Islamic Regime's military and strategic capabilities.
"Israel is determined to continue leading the offensive against the Iranian terror regime, to decapitate its commanders and thwart its strategic capabilities, until every security threat to the State of Israel and to US interests in the region is removed," he stated.
He further stressed the strength and resolve of both the military and civilians amid the ongoing situation, stating that the war with Iran will continue until their "objectives are achieved."
"The IDF is strong, and the Israeli home front is strong, and we will not stop until all war objectives are achieved," he added, as quoted by Times of Israel.
Earlier on Friday, CBS News reported, citing sources, that the Trump administration has been strategising ways and options to extract Iran's nuclear material.
According to CBS News, while the timing of any such operation, if Trump orders it, remains unclear, one of the sources said that the US President has yet to make a decision about it. However, plans have centred around the possible deployment of forces from the secretive Joint Special Operations Command - America's elite military unit often tasked with the most sensitive counter-proliferation missions, according to two sources speaking to CBS News.
While US officials have said that the Trump administration has not ruled out plans to retrieve Iranian stockpiles, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said earlier this week that "it's an option on the table for him".
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