Israel/Iran/Middle East/Armageddon

[Matthew]

>OSINT researchers, analyzing satellite images, have uncovered several massive underground complexes, likely of military origin, built by Egypt into the mountain slopes of Northern Sinai and near the country’s New Administrative Capital.
>While the exact purpose of these underground facilities remains unclear, Israel suspects that those on the Sinai Peninsula may serve as missile storage sites.
https://militarnyi.com/en/news/satellite-uncovers-vast-mysterious-underground-complexes-in-egypt

[Matthew]

>Iran's Foreign Ministry: Today, October 18, 2025, the expiration day of the JCPOA. As a result, Iran sees itself as free from all obligations and restrictions imposed on its nuclear program
https://t.me/asafroz/39397

[Matthew]

>Lebanon reported last night that after President Joseph Aoun's order to confront any Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon, the local army was put on high alert and began deploying reinforcements in the villages. According to reports, the local army also set up positions in rural areas of southern Lebanon, including in the area of Balida – the town that was raided by IDF forces on the night between Wednesday and Thursday.
>At the same time, a small cabinet discussion was held on the issue of Lebanon, with Hezbollah's violations of the agreement against the backdrop and signs that it is trying to intensify again. U.S. diplomatic sources told Sky News in Arabic last night that efforts to save Lebanon from collapse through economic and political incentives have reached an impasse, and that they "fear the worst."
https://www.ynet.co.il/yedioth/article/yokra14564790

[Matthew]

>Middle East officials and experts tell the New York Times that another round of war between Israel and Iran is only a matter of time. Contrary to Iran's claims that its stockpile of highly enriched uranium was buried in the rubble of the nuclear facilities, Israel suspects that it was moved to a safe place. Sources in the Gulf believe that another confrontation is inevitable, and Iranian officials threaten that this time their response will be broader and less restrained. For example, sources in Iran were quoted as saying that "the missile factories are now working 24 hours a day," and that in the next conflict they will launch 2,000 missiles a day at Israel – not 500 in 12 days
https://t.me/asafroz/40137

[Matthew]

>The reason for the unusual visit of the Russian military delegation to Syria - Moscow's desire to return the Russian military police to the border with Israel
https://x.com/kann_news/status/1990663571391320172

[Matthew]

>"War is inevitable" -Amichai Chikli, Israel Minister of Diaspora and Combating Antisemitism
https://x.com/AmichaiChikli/status/1998448569255162064

[Matthew]

>Report: Western intelligence officials have identified unusual activity by the IRGC Air Force in Iran, which includes movements and coordination that do not conform to normal patterns. According to sources quoted by Iran International, these include UAV, missile and air defense units. Western sources noted that this may have been a military exercise, but the scope of the activity and the level of synchronization led to increased surveillance.
https://www.israelhayom.co.il/israelnow/article/19501615

>Netanyahu will present to Trump at the joint meeting possibilities for another attack on Iran
https://t.me/N12chat/174252

[Matthew]

>Israeli officials warned the Trump administration over the weekend that an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps missile exercise could be preparations for a strike on Israel, according to three Israeli and U.S. sources with knowledge of the issue.
https://archive.is/RT1Tr

>The Saudi Al-Arabiya channel reported from "exclusive sources" that Iran has returned to its missile program. A senior American official told the channel that "Iran is using all means to send these weapons to its proxies, via land transport or through ports and beaches, as it has done for years. In our assessment, Iran views the arming of its proxies and militias as a top priority."
https://x.com/kaisos1987/status/2002749251969851672

[Matthew]

>Has Iran's Khamenei authorised small nuclear weapons?
>ISPI, an Italian foreign policy think tank, reported this month that its sources in Tehran now indicate Khamenei made a decision in October to authorise development of compact warheads for ballistic missiles
>ISPI's analysis suggested Tehran concluded that nuclear weapons would be its only actual deterrent against Israel and the US, short of surrender. The think tank noted rumours are also circulating of an ultra-secret enrichment programme at undisclosed sites never reported to the IAEA.
https://www.euronews.com/2025/12/24/has-irans-khamenei-authorised-small-nuclear-weapons-what-we-know-so-far

>Defense Minister Katz in a message to Iran: The defense establishment is closely monitoring developments - I cannot elaborate
https://t.me/amitsegal/55372

[Matthew]

>Iran in midst of ‘total war’ with US, Israel and Europe, Pezeshkian says
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/iran-in-midst-of-total-war-with-us-israel-and-europe-pezeshkian-says

[Matthew]

>Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is developing biological and chemical warheads for the country's long-range ballistic missiles, informed military sources told Iran International on Sunday.
>The IRGC Aerospace Force is working on the unconventional warheads for ballistic missiles as it transfers missile launchers to eastern regions of Iran, the sources said.
>The sources... said these activities have accelerated in recent months and are being pursued amid rising regional tensions and Tehran’s concerns about the possibility of another direct confrontation with Israel and the United States.
>Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Florida to meet the US president on Monday, when he plans to brief Donald Trump on options for potential future strikes against Iran
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202512289252

>Turkey has been trying to deploy radars on Syrian soil in recent weeks, two Western intelligence sources told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday, amid an escalating confrontation between Israel and Turkey over Ankara's presence in Syria.
>Deploying radars in Syrian territory would significantly restrict the Israel Air Force's freedom of action in Syrian airspace, as was the case in recent strikes, as Turkish radars could detect Israeli aircraft activity over the country.
>It would also complicate Israel's ability to strike targets in Iran, given that Israeli aircraft frequently use Syrian airspace as a transit route to the Islamic Republic.
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-881380

[Matthew]

>Trump: Hezbollah is not managing properly, we'll see what happens
https://t.me/yakiadam/16766

>Trump: If Hamas does not disarm within a short time, the gates of hell will open
https://t.me/amitsegal/55496

>Trump: There may be surprises in the next two days
https://t.me/amitsegal/55495

>Trump: I will support a swift attack even if Iran "only" rehabilitates itsballistic missile program.
https://t.me/amitsegal/55490

[Matthew]

>Report: Netanyahu and Trump agree to 2-month deadline for Hamas to disarm
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/report-netanyahu-and-trump-agree-to-2-month-deadline-for-hamas-to-disarm

[Matthew]

>Israel has carried out several airstrikes in southern Lebanon on what it said was Hezbollah infrastructure, as a new year’s deadline for the Lebanese state to disarm the group in the south of the country loomed.
>“There will be no calm in Beirut, nor order and stability in Lebanon, until the security of the state of Israel is guaranteed … Hezbollah: we will disarm them,” Israel Katz, Israel’s defence minister, told parliament in November.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/24/israel-strikes-southern-lebanon-as-deadline-to-disarm-hezbollah-nears

[Matthew]

>An Iranian military source told outlet Iran International: "The Iranian leadership views potential Israeli and American attacks as a threat to its very existence and intends, in the event of a conflict, to significantly raise the cost for the opposing side…The use of unconventional weapons can be justified in situations of existential threat."
>President Donald Trump told reporters Monday at Mar-a-Lago: "Now I hear that Iran is trying to build up again. And if they are, we’re going to have to knock them down. We'll knock them down. We'll knock the hell out of them."
https://www.newsweek.com/iran-building-new-missile-warhead-report-11287484

[Matthew]

>Amid Hezbollah's refusal to disarm, the Prime Minister told his ministers that Israel had received the green light from the US President to attack Lebanon
https://www.kan.org.il/content/kan-news/defense/987794

>Reports are increasing of the unusual movement of dozens of American transport and refueling planes towards Europe and the Middle East. Obviously, the background is Iran, but it's too early to draw conclusions
https://t.me/tamirmorag14/4641

[Matthew]

>Tali Gottlieb reveals: "We will attack Iran - we will do it"
https://www.maariv.co.il/breaking-news/article-1270758

>Russia is currently working to expedite the evacuation of its official representatives from Israel, according to reports published in the Russian and Iranian media over the past 24 hours. According to reports, in less than 24 hours, the third flight evacuating Russian diplomats and their families took off back into Russian territory.
>According to reports on local news sites, the evacuation is taking place at a faster pace than usual, which ostensibly indicates significant information that has reached Moscow.
https://www.c14.co.il/article/1423093

[Matthew]

>First publication: An Egyptian warship has infiltrated Gaza's maritime zone, where navigation is prohibited, and naval warships opened fire on it. The Egyptian ship turned back and returned to Egyptian water.
>The IDF Spokesperson said in response: "IDF forces acted in accordance with the procedures and called on the vessels to stop, and after no response, deterrence measures were taken. The vessel changed direction to Egyptian territory."
https://13tv.co.il/item/news/politics/security/navy-904922790

[Matthew]

>Iran activates ‘missile cities’ as Ayatollah faces gravest threat
>Iran’s supreme leader placed the country’s security services on their highest state of alert
>Iranian officials said the country was on higher alert than during the war with Israel last year, and that underground “missile cities” had also been activated to deal with external threats.
>Donald Trump has threatened to attack Iran if it continues to use violence against protesters. On Friday, he warned that he would “be hitting them very hard where it hurts...
>Officials fear any intervention by Mr Trump could trigger what they described as an “apocalyptic” war
https://archive.is/FNsBz

>Israel is on high alert for the possibility of any US intervention in Iran
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/israel-on-high-alert-for-possibility-of-us-intervention-in-iran-sources-say-report

>Iranian Parliament Speaker Warns Trump That Any Attack Will Lead Tehran to Attack Israel and Regional US Bases as "Legitimate Targets"
https://t.me/N12chat/177909

[Matthew]

>Twelve F-15E Strike Eagles of the United States Air Force's 4th Fighter Wing are on their ways to Middle East they will arrive on Monday.
https://x.com/BabakTaghvaee1/status/2010134826528190953

>Various reports of US military aircraft movement in areas near Iran. This news joins the White House tweet, about two hours ago, with the words: "God bless our soldiers."

>After these words - Reza Pahlavi, perhaps the next leader of Iran, says in a video released after 02:00 Tehran time: "Iran's freedom is near. We are not alone, international aid will arrive soon."
https://t.me/amitsegal/55830

>"I haven’t eaten. I haven’t slept or eaten in three or four days."-Lindsey Graham
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2026/01/11/sen_lindsey_graham_this_might_be_the_night.html

>Trump: If Iran hits military targets, we will hit them like they have never been hit before
https://t.me/barakbetesh/10148

>Khamenei took to social media on Friday, however, to attack Trump for his open threats, and offered a bleak prediction for the president’s immediate future.
>“The U.S. President who judges arrogantly about the whole world should know that tyrants & arrogant rulers of the world, such as Pharaoh, Nimrod, Mohammad Reza [Pahlavi] & other such rulers saw their downfall when they were at the peak of their hubris,” Khamenei wrote in a social media post on X. “He too will fall.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/iran-supreme-leader-issues-grave-prediction-on-trump/ar-AA1TTNfx

>Israel hits seven Hezbollah sites in two waves of strikes across southern Lebanon
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/israel-hits-seven-hezbollah-sites-in-two-waves-of-strikes-across-southern-lebanon

[Matthew]

>At Israel’s expense: Mohammed bin Salman’s new “moderate axis"
>Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is currently attempting to develop an alternative axis to the so-called “moderate Sunni axis," with the most prominent potential members being Turkey, Iran, Qatar, Egypt, and Pakistan, according to a report by Kan News.
>Saudi Arabia has also shifted its stance toward Israel, now defining it as the central problem in the Middle East-an approach that is also interpreted as an attempt to move closer to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/420708

>Israel has issued a warning to Hezbollah not to intervene in the event of a confrontation with Iran
https://t.me/Yair_Altman_channel14/34997

[Matthew]

>The Iranian Minister of Defense threatens:
>We will have painful military surprises in response to any attack.
>Any country that allows an attack against us or provides bases for the enemy to carry out an attack against us will be a legitimate target for our forces.
>We will attack enemy targets anywhere in the event of any aggression.
https://t.me/abualiexpress/112631