U.S.–Israel Military Cooperation

The U.S. has deployed F‑22 Raptor stealth fighter jets to Israel for the first time for a potential wartime mission, as Washington and Jerusalem prepare for possible confrontation with Iran, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Raptors arrived this week and are intended both to help defend Israeli territory and U.S. forces in the region against Iranian retaliation and to give the U.S. an advanced platform capable of offensive operations if President Trump orders strikes on Iran’s nuclear and missile infrastructure. Basing U.S. combat aircraft in Israel marks a significant deepening of operational military cooperation and would put American forces much closer to any Iranian battlefield than in past crises. The move comes as the administration has already surged carriers and other air and naval assets toward Iran, fueling concern among U.S. allies and markets that a limited strike could spiral into a wider conflict affecting oil flows and regional security. Analysts and commentators online are split between seeing the deployment as necessary deterrence and warning it risks locking the U.S. into Israel’s fight if tit‑for‑tat attacks escalate.