US and Israel revise their justifications for the Iran war: day‑four update

The United States struck Iran after learning that its ally Israel was preparing an attack, which would have provoked retaliation against U.S. forces, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. “We understood that if we did not act pre‑emptively before they launched those attacks, we would incur greater casualties,” Rubio told reporters. The rationale for this strike differs from the explanations offered by former President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Rubio also warned that the “hardest blows” are still to come from the U.S. military. “The next phase will be even more severe on Iran than it is now,” he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the conflict with Iran may take “some time” but will not last years. Speaking to Fox News, he said, “I said it could be quick and decisive. It may take some time, but it’s not going to take years. It’s not an endless war.”

Trump indicated that U.S. strikes on Iran could extend far beyond the original timetable. He had first estimated the war would last four to five weeks, but later suggested it could continue longer, and has since tried to justify a broad, open‑ended campaign. The president outlined four main goals for the operation: “First, we are destroying Iran’s missile capability… Second, we are eliminating their navy… Third, we are preventing the world’s leading sponsor of terror from acquiring a nuclear weapon. Finally, we are stopping the Iranian regime from arming, funding and directing terrorist groups beyond its borders.”

The U.S. embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was hit by a drone, sparking a fire.

The State Department has urged Americans to leave more than a dozen Middle‑Eastern nations, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, as the conflict escalates. Mora Namdar, the department’s assistant secretary for consular affairs, said U.S. citizens should depart using available commercial transport “because of safety risks.” No government‑organized evacuation flights have been arranged.

There was uncertainty about navigation through the Strait of Hormuz after a senior officer of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned he would “burn any ship” attempting to pass the waterway, a crucial route for oil and gas. However, U.S. Central Command told Fox News the strait remained open.

The Israeli military announced a fresh wave of strikes on Tehran early Tuesday, shortly after it issued an evacuation alert for residents near the headquarters of Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB.

Israel’s forces said in the early hours of Tuesday that they were working to intercept a new barrage of missiles launched from Iran, urging people in several areas to take shelter.

The Iranian Red Crescent Society reported at least 555 deaths across Iran. In its latest bulletin, the Norway‑based human‑rights organization Hengaw said the death toll on the third day had risen to at least 1,500.