Polish citizens in Iran should leave immediately, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday, warning that due to the potential for armed conflict, evacuation may no longer be possible in a matter of hours.
“Please leave Iran immediately… and do not go to this country under any circumstances,” Tusk said.
Tusk’s warning follows a Wednesday Axios report stating that the United States is closer to military conflict with Iran than most Americans realize, and a massive weeks-long campaign could “begin very soon.”
Such a conflict would likely involve an operation more like a war than the single-day operation in Venezuela conducted last month, the report cited “sources” as saying. Those same sources told Axios that it would likely be a joint US-Israeli campaign with a broader scope than the 12-day war last June.
The second round of talks between the United States and Iran ended on Tuesday, with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner meeting Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Although both sides said the meetings resulted in progress, several sources told The Jerusalem Post that significant gaps remain.
Additonally, the Kremlin said on Thursday that it was seeing an unprecedented escalation of tension around Iran as the United States moved military assets into the Middle East, and Moscow urged both Tehran and “other parties” to exercise prudence and restraint.
The Kremlin said naval drills between Iran and Russia were planned well in advance of the current tensions.
US likely to attack Iran, but Trump has not yet decided to do so, sources tell ‘Post’
Further, the United States is likely to attack Iran eventually but not necessarily in the coming days, despite the spike in global media “noise” surrounding the conflict, The Jerusalem Post learned on Wednesday.
Sources indicated that Israel’s impression is that US President Donald Trump has not yet decided on his final course of action, even if his disappointment in Iran’s negotiating positions this week makes an eventual American attack on Tehran more likely.
Rather, many of the latest reports are viewed by some Israeli officials as global media noise picking up on the general feel of Trump administration officials coming out of this week’s negotiations as opposed to crossing the threshold.
Meanwhile, top United States military officials have informed US President Donald Trump that they are ready to launch an attack on Iran as early as this coming Saturday, according to a report by CBS News.
However, while strikes could potentially be scheduled for this weekend, reports indicate that any action is unlikely to occur so soon.
CBS reported that Trump has not yet made a final decision on a strike, citing military officials.
Iran issues NOTAM warning due to rocket launches near Hormuz Strait
Iran issued on Wednesday a notice to airmen (NOTAM) that it plans rocket launches in areas across its south on Thursday from 3:30 GMT to 13:30 GMT, the US Federal Aviation Administration website showed on Wednesday.
Iran held naval drills this week in the Strait of Hormuz and plans to hold a joint naval exercise with Russia on Thursday.
The notice was issued amid heightened tensions with the US, which has deployed warships near Iran, as US Vice President JD Vance said Washington was weighing whether to continue diplomatic engagement with Tehran or pursue other options.
Amichai Stein, Yonah Jeremy Bob, Danya Saperstein, and Shoshana Baker contributed to this report.