The United States has seen indications that Iran is preparing to "imminently" launch a ballistic missile attack on Israel on the heels of Israel's ground incursion into south Lebanon, a senior White House official told NBC News on Tuesday,The White House official warned that any direct attack on Israel by Iran "will carry severe consequences for Iran."
"We are actively supporting defensive preparations to defend Israel against this attack," the official said.
Iran's suspected planned attack came as Israeli ground forces invaded south Lebanon as part of an attack on Hezbollah, the militant group backed by Iran.
The number of Israeli troops who have entered Lebanon is in "the low hundreds," an Israeli official told NBC News.
In April, Iran launched an attack on Israel that included more than 300 drones and ballistic missiles after two top Iranian commanders were killed by an Israeli airstrike in Syria.
Persons:
Iran's, Hassan Nasrallah
Organizations:
White House, NBC, White, Israel, Embassy, NBC News, Dow Jones, West Texas
Locations:
States, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, U.S, Jerusalem, Beirut, Syria