Senior American military officials briefed leadership in a key Middle East ally that President Donald Trump could authorize an attack on Iran as early as Sunday, Drop Site News reported Friday. The planned strikes would target nuclear and ballistic missile sites and Iranian leadership itself. A former senior U.S. intelligence official confirmed the operation aims at regime change. “This isn’t about the nukes or the missile program. This is about regime change,” the source stated.
Two senior Arab intelligence officials told Drop Site they received warnings that a U.S. attack could come “imminently.” U.S. war planners envision strikes designed to “decapitate” the Iranian government, focusing on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The strategy assumes successful strikes on Iranian leadership would trigger mass protests and governmental collapse. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is actively encouraging the attack and has reportedly assured Trump that Israel can help install a new, Western-friendly government in Iran.
Trump confirmed Friday he had given Iran a deadline to make a deal, as Washington positioned military assets across the Middle East. Asked by reporters in the Oval Office whether he’d set a deadline before a potential strike, Trump confirmed he had communicated one directly to Tehran, adding, “Only they know for sure.” He did not reveal the timing. Asked about a timeline for when U.S. forces in the region might pull back, Trump remained noncommittal. “They have to float someplace. They might as well float near Iran.”
“We have a large armada flotilla heading toward Iran right now,” Trump stated. “Hopefully, we’ll make a deal. If we do make a deal, that’s good. If we don’t make a deal, we’ll see what happens.” The U.S. has said a deal with Iran must include a ban on uranium enrichment in Iran, removal of already-enriched uranium from Iran, a cap on Iran’s stockpile of long-range missiles, and a rollback of Iran’s support for terrorist proxies in the region. Tehran has rejected all these terms.
Regional allies have drawn red lines. Saudi Arabia and the UAE both stated they will not allow their airspace or territorial waters to be used for any strike. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Turkish officials in Istanbul on Friday, saying Iran remains open to negotiations on its nuclear program but not under threat of military force. Araghchi warned that Iran’s missile capabilities would not be part of any talks. “I want to state firmly that Iran’s defensive and missile capabilities will never be subject to negotiation,” he said during his meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. “We will preserve and expand our defensive capabilities to whatever extent is necessary to defend the country.”
Iranian officials have warned of severe retaliation if attacked. A professor at the University of Tehran told Drop Site that Iran’s new military leadership has abandoned its previous policy of telegraphing attacks to minimize escalation. The source revealed Iran’s goal in the event of another attack is to inflict at least 500 American casualties. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged this week that 30,000 to 40,000 U.S. troops stationed in the region could be within range of Iranian missiles in the event of conflict.
Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, threatened in posts to X both in Persian and Hebrew: “A limited strike is an illusion. Any military action by America, of any kind and at any level, will be considered the start of a war, and the response will be immediate, comprehensive, and unprecedented, directed at the aggressor, at the heart of Tel Aviv, and at all who support the aggressor.”
The White House referred reporters to Trump’s Friday confirmation that a U.S. naval force is heading toward Iran. An American missile destroyer docked at Israel’s Red Sea port city of Eilat on Friday. The IDF said the arrival of USS Delbert D. Black in Eilat was pre-planned and part of ongoing cooperation between the army and the U.S. military. American warships regularly sail in the Red Sea area, although their arrival at Eilat Port is rare.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Friday the UK was working with allies to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons when asked whether he would support possible U.S. strikes on Iran. “The goal, or the aim, here is that Iran shouldn’t be able to develop nuclear weapons, and that is hugely important,” Starmer told BBC News. Asked whether his comments suggested he could support any U.S. strikes, he said: “I am saying we support the goal and we are talking to allies about how we get to that goal.”
Starmer criticized Iran’s treatment of protesters, calling the killing and repression of demonstrators “grotesque” after an Iranian official confirmed at least 5,000 people had been killed in nationwide protests. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) confirmed 6,221 people had been killed, including 5,856 protesters, 100 minors, 214 members of the security forces, and 49 bystanders. The group added it was still investigating another 17,091 possible fatalities. At least 42,324 people have been arrested. Time Magazine and opposition-aligned website Iran International have reported that over 30,000 may have been killed.
The New York Times reported Trump is considering potential raids by American troops on facilities within the Islamic Republic. Among the options are sending commandos to nuclear facilities that were not damaged during the 12-day war in June. Another operation would include strikes against the Islamic Republic’s leadership with the aim of creating the chaos needed for Iranian security forces to oust Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The report noted it was “unclear” who would run the country instead in such a situation, or whether they would be more amenable to good ties with the West.
Israel is pressing for a joint operation targeting Iran’s ballistic missile program, which has largely recovered since June, officials told The Times. All the options go beyond those presented two weeks ago to the president. Officials said Trump is adopting a similar approach to Iran as the one he took toward Venezuela by building up forces nearby while threatening the country’s leader to accept his demands or face military action. However, one official said the president and his top aides understand that an operation against the Islamic Republic would be far more risky than the operation in Venezuela.
A potential directive from Trump on a strike is expected in the coming days, once all U.S. military assets heading to the Middle East are in place, a senior U.S. official told Channel 12 on Thursday. Israeli officials do not believe that a limited U.S. strike will bring down the Iranian regime, and Trump shares their assessment, according to Channel 12. They assessed that Trump will focus a potential attack on physical Iranian assets, including its nuclear and missile programs.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in a call that Ankara was ready to play a “facilitator” role between the sides. NATO member Turkey shares a border with Iran and opposes any foreign intervention there. It has called for U.S.-Iran dialogue to avoid further destabilization. Speaking alongside Araghchi, Fidan said he had long discussions on the issue with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff on Thursday and would keep lines open with Washington to avoid conflict and the isolation of Iran.
Fidan said U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations must restart and would pave the way to lifting sanctions on Iran. “We call the parties to the negotiating table” to address the issues “one by one,” he said. Trump confirmed Friday he has had dialogue with Iran. “We have a lot of very big, very powerful ships sailing to Iran right now, and it would be great if we didn’t have to use them,” Trump told reporters. Asked if he had had any conversations with Iran in the last few days or if he was planning to, Trump responded, “I have had, and I am planning on it.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz predicted the Islamic Republic’s “days are numbered.” He suggested it could be a “matter of weeks” until the Iranian government was no longer in charge of the country. “A regime that can only hold onto power through sheer violence and terror against its own population: its days are numbered,” he said at a press conference.
IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin reiterated that there was no change to the military’s guidelines for the Israeli public. “This Sabbath, like the previous ones, I wish to emphasize and reassure: We are on high alert and continuously monitoring developments. There is no change to the guidelines. If there is any change, we will update accordingly,” he said in a post on X.
