Iran Braces for Israeli Attack That Could Change the Middle East Forever

Iran is preparing for the country to strike back in another dangerous round of escalation that has the potential to push the Middle East into an all-out war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed that Iran would "pay" after the Islamic Republic fired up to 200 missiles against its longtime foe.

Iran has openly accelerated its enrichment of uranium and adopted other nuclear-related measures since then-President Donald Trump 's administration abandoned the multilateral Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal in 2019 .

Iran 's energy sector is even more potentially vulnerable, including refineries, power plants and other facilities critical to Iran 's economic well-being.

The situation could especially escalate if the U.S. participates in the Israeli strike, Vazirian says.

Iran 's response to any new Israeli attacks "will be solely directed at the aggressor," the Iranian Mission to the United Nations says.

Taghavinia and Vazirian were skeptical that the U.S. would get directly involved in the strikes.

With the election looming in November , Michael DiMino , a former CIA analyst, said Israel was "pushing to change the facts on the ground as much as they can".