Israel warned it could strike Iran again with even greater military force
Netanyahu said the campaign against Iran remains unfinished despite recent gains
Iran retaliated by targeting US military facilities across Gulf states
The latest exchanges have heightened fears of a wider regional conflict
Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz said that his country was prepared to resume its military campaign against Iran if needed, vowing to do so "with even greater force," as new fighting erupted between the United States and Iran on Thursday.
"The army is ready and on alert for a resumption of fighting, in order to regain air superiority and strike again... in Iran, to eliminate threats, including a third time if necessary," Katz said at a military ceremony, according to AFP. "If we have to go back, we will go back, with even greater force," he added.
Speaking at the same ceremony, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran had been weakened by the two previous military campaigns Israel launched against it, but acknowledged that the conflict was not yet over. "The Iranian axis is weaker than ever before, while Israel is stronger than ever before," he said. "We proved that the long arm of the Israeli Air Force can reach anywhere, from Yemen to Iran. Yet we must also acknowledge that the campaign is not over," he added.
US-Israel Co-ordination Amid Escalating Conflict
The remarks came as part of ongoing coordination between Israel and the United States. Netanyahu spoke with US President Donald Trump on Thursday evening, during which Trump updated the Israeli Prime Minister on American moves in the Gulf.
According to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office, Netanyahu also raised the severity of recent statements made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan against the existence of the State of Israel, as well as the need for security zones along Israel's borders, the statement said.
The war began on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched an air campaign against Iran that killed the Islamic republic's supreme leader and other senior officials. It was Israel's second campaign against Iran, following a 12-day war in June 2025.
Iran's Retaliation Against US Bases
Iranian forces struck American military infrastructure across neighbouring Gulf states on Thursday, hours after Washington carried out fresh strikes on Iran's southern coast and eastern provinces. IRGC said it had targeted US Patriot defence systems in Kuwait via drones, an early-warning site in Qatar, and a fuel depot in Bahrain.
Kuwait confirmed intercepting a cruise missile, three ballistic missiles and ten drones, with one person hurt by falling debris. Qatar, host to the region's largest US base, urged a return to diplomacy and condemned the separate attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command said it had hit roughly 90 Iranian military sites, including air defences, missile storage and naval assets, describing the action as accountability for attacks on shipping. Iranian officials reported 14 deaths and 78 injuries across five provinces from the American strikes, according to state media, with one attack reportedly hitting a rail bridge used for trade with Russia and China.
