Hellfire Missiles secretly sent to Israel from the US

In the days leading up to Israel’s unprecedented airstrikes on Iran, the United States quietly delivered hundreds of advanced Hellfire missiles to Israel, according to an investigation by Middle East Eye, a United Kingdom-based media website.

The covert weapons transfer, which included around 300 Hellfire missiles, took place last Tuesday - just days before Israel launched its attack on Iran.

This revelation raises questions about Washington’s prior knowledge of Israel’s military plans, despite the Trump administration publicly expressing interest in nuclear negotiations with Iran.

According to two Federal officials who spoke anonymously to Middle East Eye, the Trump administration was well aware of Israel’s intentions to strike Iran. Intelligence briefings in April and May had already outlined Israel’s target analysis, cyberattack coordination, and precision strike strategies aimed at Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Despite this, the Trump administration continued supplying Israel with weapons and ammunition throughout the stalled nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran.

The Hellfire is a laser-guided air-to-surface missile. While not specifically designed to destroy nuclear facilities, it is effective in accurately hitting targets.

During Friday’s attack, Israel’s military deployed over 100 warplanes, using precision targeting technology to strike top Iranian military officials, nuclear scientists, and command centers. A senior defense official said: “There are specific times and contexts where Hellfires are effective. They were very useful for Israel.”

On Friday, Israeli airstrikes killed several top Iranian officials and nuclear scientists. Among the dead were Major General Hossein Salami, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC); Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces; and Ali Shamkhani, a close adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The Trump administration had known about the Israeli strike plan months in advance.

In April and May, the CIA had been briefed on Israel’s unilateral plans to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities. These plans included target analysis, cyberattack coordination, and precision strike strategies. The plan reportedly impressed the Trump administration.

However, in recent months, Trump’s behavior led some analysts- and possibly even Iranian officials - to believe he might obstruct Netanyahu’s call for open war.

On Friday, News outlet Axios reported, citing two Israeli officials, that the Trump administration had only “pretended” to oppose the Israeli attack, while in reality placing no real obstacles in its way.

Trump later stated that he had given Iran a 60-day window to agree to a new nuclear deal. Israeli media had reported on this 60-day deadline back in March. The Trump administration sat for nuclear talks with Iran on April 12. Exactly 61 days later, Israel launched its strike on Tehran.

In recent weeks, nuclear negotiations between Iran and the US had stalled. Washington insisted that Iran must cease all uranium enrichment, while Tehran declared that any compromise on this issue would be unacceptable.

According to the two officials who spoke to Middle East Eye, throughout the negotiation period, the Trump administration continued to supply Israel with weapons and ammunition.

There was no need for the US to publicly disclose the missile transfers, as they were already authorized under a previously approved $7.4 billion arms deal.