The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will conduct a simulated airstrike on Iran during a month-long military exercise beginning in late May.
Several Israeli media outlets reported on the planned exercise, and Ram Ben-Barak, chairman of the Israeli Parliament’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, confirmed the military exercise in a radio interview.
The Jerusalem Post called the simulation, reportedly dubbed the “Chariots of Fire,” the “largest military exercise” in Israel’s history, involving thousands of soldiers and reservists. Almost all IDF units will take part in the month-long maneuvers, which are scheduled to begin on May 29, according to The Times of Israel.
The exercise will include a simulated attack on Iranian nuclear targets, and the final week of the exercise will take place in Cyprus, The Times of Israel reported. The online outlet said one reason for the exercise is that Israel wants to be prepared in case stalled negotiations between the United States and Iran over a new nuclear deal collapse.
On Tuesday, Benny Gantz, Israel’s defense minister, warned that Iran’s uranium purification efforts had exceeded figures from a March United Nations report.
“Iran continues to accumulate irreversible knowledge and experience in the development, research, production and operation of advanced centrifuges,” Gantz said during a conference, according to The Times of Israel.
Iran “is only a few weeks away from receiving fissile material needed for a first bomb,” he added.
According to Israeli media sources, later this month the Israel Defense Forces will conduct a major military exercise to simulate an attack on Iran. Above: An Israeli C-130 Hercules aircraft performs at an air show during the graduation ceremony for Israel Air Force pilots at Hatzerim Base December 22, 2021. Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images
In April, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, a nuclear regulatory agency, said Iran had set up manufacturing of parts for centrifuges in an underground workshop.
In 2018, President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major world powers. Iran later reportedly violated various terms of the deal, including enriching uranium at sites not allowed under the deal.
President Joe Biden said the US would return to the original deal in 2021 when Iran began complying with the restrictions, but no deal was reached with Tehran.
Speaking about the “Chariots of Fire” exercise with radio station Reshet Bet, Ben-Barak said plans for the month-long military exercise and its simulated attack on Iran have been in the works for some time.
“This exercise was planned a long time ago,” Ben-Barak told the broadcaster, according to Reuters. “We are preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.”
Newsweek has reached out to the Israeli Defense Ministry for comment.