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No credible source can guarantee that a massive attack will occur this weekend.
Diplomatic communications are reportedly continuing through Qatar, Oman and other intermediaries. Some of the military buildup and public threats may be intended to frighten Tehran into reopening the Strait of Hormuz and accepting American nuclear demands without another enormous battle.
But the warning lights are flashing.
The president says he is close to a decision. B-1 bombers have entered the renewed campaign. Additional refueling aircraft have been positioned. Iranian air defenses and coastal systems are being systematically reduced. Pickaxe Mountain has been publicly identified as a coming target. Iran is reinforcing the Houthis, threatening Gulf infrastructure and warning Britain that an airbase used by American bombers is now a legitimate target.
Taken individually, any one of these developments might be dismissed as signaling or psychological warfare.
Taken together, they describe a region preparing for the possibility that the current war is about to enter its most dangerous phase yet.