Media: White House assessed likelihood of US military operation against Iran

The US has a 90 percent probability of launching a military operation in Iran in the coming weeks.

As reported by Oxu.Az, this was stated to Axios by an unnamed advisor to American President Donald Trump. The source added that those in the White House circle are warning him against this step.

According to the publication, over the past 24 hours the US has sent 50 F-35, F-22, and F-16 fighter jets to the Middle East.

A possible US military operation in Iran will be large-scale and last several weeks, according to Axios sources. They say it "will look more like a full-scale war than a targeted operation" like the US operation in Venezuela on January 3. This could become the most significant US military intervention in the Middle East in the last decade, the publication writes.

Sources suggested that Israel would participate in the operation. The consequences for Iran "will be much larger and more significant" than during the US and Israeli operation against Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025. According to two Israeli officials, the Jewish state "is preparing for war in the coming days."

In early January, Donald Trump "was close to striking Iran" over the suppression of protests in the Islamic republic, Axios writes. However, the "window of opportunity" for an attack was missed at that time, and the US shifted to a two-track approach - nuclear negotiations combined with military buildup in the Middle East.

On February 17, the second round of Iran-US negotiations mediated by Oman concluded. Both sides announced progress in the dialogue. However, in conversation with Axios, American officials expressed doubt that Washington and Tehran would be able to resolve their differences.