Alaa Waheeda, the Arabic-language spokesperson of the Israeli army, said that the country’s forces are set to be in “the highest level of readiness” for a potential confrontation with the Islamic Republic in both offensive and defensive sectors. Referring to the attacks of October 7, he said that Israel will no longer wait to receive the first blow. At the same time, Israel Katz, Israel’s defense minister, after a meeting with senior military and defense officials, warned that if the Islamic Republic attacks Israel, it will face a “crushing blow.” Israeli officials have not said whether the meeting was held in response to a specific intelligence warning or not. The Ynet website also reported that some Western intelligence bodies believe the Islamic Republic may be seeking to draw Israel into a new confrontation and even initiate the attack, but no details about the evidence for this assessment have been released.