Trump says 'only time will tell' how Iran nuclear program is ended

The United States is likely to enter the Israel-Iran war in coming days and is already making preparations to do so, the New York Times reported citing two Israeli defense officials.

Based on Israeli conversations with their US counterparts over the past two days, a US strike on Iran could take place in the coming days, the officials were quoted as saying.

A nine-day Israeli military campaign has killed 865 people and wounded over 3,000, US-based rights group HRANA reported on Saturday.

363 of the fatalities were civilian, 215 military and the rest still undetermined, HRANA added.

Israel has so far reported 24 civilian fatalities and approximately 1,200 injuries resulting from ballistic missiles fired from Iran.

Israeli officials have told the United States they may not wait until the end of Donald Trump's two-week deadline to strike Iran’s underground Fordow nuclear facility and could act alone, Reuters reported Saturday, citing two sources familiar with what they described as a tense phone call.

“The Israeli officials said they do not want to wait the two weeks that US President Donald Trump presented on Thursday as a deadline for deciding whether the US will get involved in the Israel-Iran war," the report said citing the sources.

During the tense conversation with US officials on Thursday, Israeli leaders—Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and military chief Eyal Zamir—expressed frustration with Washington’s timeline, insisting they face a narrowing window to hit Iran’s fortified Fordow site.

Only the US has weapons capable of penetrating the mountain-buried facility, the sources said.

A new wave of Israeli airstrikes is targeting multiple cities across Iran—from Bandar Abbas, Ahvaz, and Marvdasht in the south; to Tabriz, Salmas and Babol in the north; Sanandaj and Kermanshah in the west; and Tehran, Qom, and Isfahan in the center, eyewitnesses and media reports say.

The Israeli military says it has attacked unmanned aerial vehicle depots and weapons depot in Bandar Abbas area in southern Iran.

Israeli media reports say an Iranian naval base in Bandar Abbas has also been targeted by the Israeli air force.