This article was originally published by Michael Snyder at The Economic Collapse Blog. 

Can you imagine what a full-blown war between Israel and Iran would look like?  We are literally on the verge of an apocalyptic war in the Middle East, but it isn’t getting much attention in the Western world because everyone is so focused on the upcoming U.S. presidential election.

I completely understand why people are so focused on this election, but what is about to happen in the Middle East has the potential to change the course of history.  Once Israel attacks Iran, nothing will ever be the same again.  Iran has already promised to hit Israel back extremely hard, and that would compel Israel to attack Iran again.  Once these two heavyweights start pummeling one another, it may be virtually impossible for anyone to stop the fight until it is decisively concluded.

According to CNN, U.S. officials are saying that they expect Israel to attack Iran before the U.S. presidential election on November 5th…

American officials expect Israel will retaliate against Iran for its attack earlier this month before November 5, sources tell CNN, a timeline that would thrust the growing volatility in the Middle East squarely into public view within days of the American presidential election.

The timeline and parameters of Israel’s retaliation against Iran have been subject to intense debate inside Israel’s government and are not directly related to the timing of the US election, the sources said.

Still, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — described by senior US administration officials as a political animal deeply attuned to American politics — appears highly sensitive to any potential political ramifications of Israel’s actions in the US, they said.

If this report is accurate, that means that the attack on Iran will almost certainly occur before the end of October.

CNN is also reporting that Israel’s military plan for a strike on Iran “is ready”…

Israel’s plan to respond to Iran’s October 1 attack is ready, a source familiar with the matter told CNN, without providing further information.

CNN has reached out to the Israeli ministry of defense for comment.

If the plan “is ready”, that would seem to infer that the specific targets have already been selected.

And that lines up perfectly with a report that was just put out by the Times of Israel…

According to Channel 12 news, the military presented a list of targets to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gallant as it finalizes preparations, which include “sensitive coordination” with other countries in the region.

A report by the Kan public broadcaster said “the political echelon” had decided on the targets, without specifying which officials or decision-making forum.

“The targets are clear. Now it’s a matter of time,” an Israeli source told the broadcaster.

That sounds pretty definitive.

It is clear that an attack is coming.

The only question now is what day it will happen.

Will the Israeli government wait until after the Feast of Tabernacles to launch the strike?

If so, it would appear that the last week of October would be the most likely window of time for the attack.

Of course, it is always possible that the Israeli government could order the attack to happen right away.

We just don’t know.

But what we do know is that the Iranians have told us over and over again what will happen if Israel attacks.

In fact, the foreign minister of Iran just made it very clear to the head of the UN…

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned UN chief Antonio Guterres that Tehran is ready for a “decisive and regretful” response if Israel attacks his country in retaliation to the almost 200 ballistic missiles at Israel on October 1.

An Iranian response would almost certainly be quite a bit larger than the missile attack that we witnessed on October 1st.

Needless to say, such an Iranian response would not cause the Israelis to back down.

Instead, Israel would just hit back even harder.

And then there would be an all-out war between Israel and Iran.

Are you ready for that?

As the world waits for the Israeli attack on Iran to begin, the IDF just continues to hammer targets all over Lebanon.

In fact, the IDF just hit Beirut with missile strikes for the first time in six days even though the Biden administration has been strongly urging Israel to show restraint…

Just hours after the Biden administration warned Israel over the expanding scope and scale of its military strikes on Lebanon’s capital, the Israeli military said its fighter jets flew to the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh and struck an underground Hezbollah weapons cache. Dahiyeh, considered a stronghold of the Iran-backed, U.S. and Israeli-designated terrorist group, has been hit by Israeli missiles previously, but the strikes Tuesday night were the first in five days.

The overnight attack was Israel’s fourth on the Lebanese capital since it started targeting top Hezbollah officials in the country in mid-September. Israeli airstrikes on Oct. 10 killed at least 22 people and injured more than 120 others in a particularly deadly 24-hour period.

And it appears that preparations are being made for a widespread ground operation along the northern front…

Israeli troops have cleared landmines and established new barriers on the frontier between the Golan Heights and a demilitarized strip bordering Syria in a sign Israel may expand its ground operations against Hezbollah while bolstering its own defenses, security sources and analysts claimed on Tuesday.

The move suggests Israel may seek to strike Hezbollah for the first time from further east along Lebanon’s border, at the same time creating a secure area from which it can freely reconnoiter the terror group and prevent infiltration, the sources said.

Tens of thousands of people have already been killed since this war began on October 7th, 2023.

But if an all-out war between Israel and Iran erupts, millions of people could die.

I wish that I was exaggerating.

This is it.

This is the biggest Middle East war, and as I have been warning for years, it is going to shock the entire planet.

Israel and Iran have been getting ready for this final showdown for a very long time.

And once they start going at it, this war won’t be over until one side settles things decisively.

Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written eight other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream, and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.