The
“Wing of Zion” aircraft, used to transport Israel’s state leadership,
departed Israel today, left the country’s airspace, and landed in Crete
after a flight of just over an hour and a half. Several hours later,
following a brief stop on the Greek island, the plane began its return
to Israel.
- Israeli
officials familiar with the matter said the flight was a scheduled
training and maintenance exercise.
- According to those officials, it was
carried out “as part of the aircraft’s annual maintenance program,” and
its rapid return to Israel supported that explanation.
Still,
the timing drew attention. This is not the first time the Wing of Zion
aircraft has been moved out of Israel during volatile security periods.
On June 13, hours before the launch of Operation Am Kelavi
against Iran, the aircraft was taken beyond Israel’s borders due to
assessments it could become a strategic target in a potential Iranian
response. A similar step was taken during Israel’s October 2024 strike
on Iran.
The
aircraft’s movement coincided with signs of shifting American military
posture in the region. According to Reuters, some personnel stationed at
the U.S. military’s Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest American
base in the Middle East housing around 10,000 troops, were advised to
leave the facility by Wednesday evening. Three diplomats told Reuters
the move was precautionary. One diplomat stressed, “It’s a posture
change and not an ordered evacuation.”
A
senior Iranian official told Reuters earlier that Tehran had warned
several regional states that U.S. military bases on their territory
would be targeted if Washington launched an attack on Iran.
- The warning
reportedly included countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab
Emirates, and Turkey. Iran previously fired missiles at Al Udeid
following U.S. strikes during the June conflict.
- European
officials, speaking to the Washington Post, said they assess that any
American strike would likely focus on the leadership and power centers
of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Basij militia.
- According to those officials, “there are no indications of a strike
against nuclear facilities.” They added that Tehran believes U.S.
President Donald Trump faces political pressure at home and is continuing to signal openness to negotiations in an effort to buy time.
Israeli
security officials share the assessment that the United States is
moving closer to military action against Iran. According to those
evaluations, a potential operation would likely be multi-layered,
combining airstrikes against strategic regime targets, significant cyber
operations aimed at disrupting command and control systems, and
psychological or information efforts intended to further inflame unrest
inside Iran.
Iran,
for its part, has publicly signaled readiness. Majid Mousavi, commander
of the IRGC’s Air and Space Force, said Wednesday,
“Our forces are at
the highest level of readiness to confront any aggression.”
He claimed
Iran’s missile production now exceeds levels seen before last June’s
fighting and said all damage sustained since then had been repaired.
The
central question, Israeli officials say, is not whether Washington will
act, but how far it is prepared to go. A limited strike could be
designed to pressure Tehran back to negotiations, while a broader
campaign would aim to significantly weaken the regime’s grip on power.
