U.S. would join Israeli strike on Iran: American officials

JERUSALEM, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- The United States would support Israel in the event that the latter decides to independently attack Iran's nuclear facilities, the Ma'ariv daily reported Monday, citing messages recently conveyed from top American officials.

A series of clandestine messages relayed by both Republican and Democratic officials suggest that U.S. President Barack Obama would be forced to join Israel if it were to launch a military operation against Iran prior to the U.S. presidential election in November, Ma'ariv said.

The unnamed officials behind the communique are said to include political advisers to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and Obama associates, who opined that the president would not be able to ignore an Israeli attack, let alone a harsh Iranian reprisal against the Israeli home front.

Sitting on the sidelines while Israel is engaged in combat could see Obama losing the election. On the other hand, aiding Israel in countering an Iranian backlash would help him secure a second term in office, the U.S. officials estimated.

They said that the U.S. military would likely bolster an Israeli strike with its own aerial assets, munitions and personnel, and assist in defending the Israeli home front in the event of a missile strike by Iran and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah.

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