Shapiro served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East until January—charged with, among other things, considering scenarios in which tensions between Israel and Iran escalated into all-out war and preparing U.

Israel and Iran have continued to trade heavy missile strikes overnight as Donald Trump threatens to respond 'at levels never seen before' if Tehran attacks US bases.Posting on Truth Social, the US president said his forces had “nothing to do with the attack on Iran,

Israel and Iran traded fire for a third straight day on Sunday, with rising casualties and expanding targets marking a sharp escalation in the conflict between the longtime adversaries. Overnight Iranian strikes killed at least ten people in Israel,

President Donald Trump said early on Sunday that if Iran attacks the United States in any way, it would face the might of the US military “at levels never seen before.”

The two sides were scheduled to meet for a sixth round of negotiations on Sunday. Oman, which was set to host the talks, said on Saturday that this round had been canceled.

The United States is the main international backer of Israel, Iran's biggest regional foe. It is also a close ally of Sunni Gulf monarchies which for years pursued their own rivalry with the Islamic Republic, seeing it as their main regional threat.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Israel unleashed airstrikes across Iran for a third day on Sunday and threatened even greater force as some Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defenses to strike buildings in the heart of the country. Planned talks on Iran’s nuclear program, which could provide an off-ramp, were canceled.

In sweeping attacks that started early Friday, Israel has struck at the regime in Tehran, targeting Iranian nuclear and military assets. The Israeli strikes have killed more than 70 people, including four top security chiefs, and damaged Iran’s main nuclear site at Natanz.

The United States has pulled some diplomatic staff and military families out of the Middle East, citing unspecified regional security risks.