There are clear signs the U.S. may soon join Israel’s ongoing offensive against its longtime foe Iran. American military assets are on the move. Over the last few days, the Air Force has sent dozens of refueling aircraft — which resupply jets, enabling longer bombing runs — to the Middle East, and a U.S. aircraft carrier has begun heading to the region.
Though President Donald Trump and his aides continue to send mixed messages over the possibility of direct U.S. involvement, it’s becoming easier for Trump to order U.S. forces to fight.
The choice to participate in a war against Iran still rests with Trump, but the military build-up suggests the increased influence of the member of his national security team who may be most supportive of an Israeli-American operation against Iran: Michael “Erik” Kurilla, the U.S. military commander for operations in the Middle East.
People familiar with Kurilla told HuffPost he is especially close to Israel, even by the standards of other American officials who have worked with the longtime U.S. partner. That proximity has largely been to Israeli military and intelligence officials who have long treated Iran as an incontrovertible neighborhood threat — while the U.S., further away and with its own interests, has attempted diplomacy with Tehran.
