Iran has put its defence systems around its nuclear sites on high alert amid fears of an attack by Israel and the US, The Telegraph has learnt.
According to two high-level government sources, the Islamic Republic has also been bolstering defences around key nuclear and missile sites, which include the deployment of additional air defence system launchers.
Officials say the measures are in response to growing concerns of potential joint military action by Israel and the United States.
It follows warnings from US intelligence to both the Biden and Trump administrations that Israel would likely target key Iranian nuclear sites this year.
“They [Iranian authorities] are just waiting for the attack and are anticipating it every night and everything has been on high alert – even in sites that no one knows about,” one source told The Telegraph.
“Work to fortify nuclear sites has been ongoing for years but it has intensified over the past year, particularly since Israel launched the first attack,” he added.
“Recent developments, including Donald Trump’s comments and reports about potential plans from his administration to strike Iran, have further intensified activities.”
Israel and Iran have been engaged in a long shadow war, mainly between Israel and the Islamic Republic’s proxies.
Since the war in Gaza began in 2023, both sides have carried out daring attacks on each other.
In October last year, Iran launched unprecedented strikes involving 200 missiles on Israel, which retaliated with airstrikes.
Iran now fears that with the support of Mr Trump, who has advocated for Israel to hit Iran’s nuclear facilities, an Israeli attack is imminent.
The official acknowledged that any big strike could leave Iran vulnerable against its defence systems which were heavily weakened by last year’s Israel strikes.
“Several additional [air defence system] launchers have been deployed, but there is an understanding that they may not be effective in the event of a large-scale strike,” he said.
The Islamic regime has domestically developed an air defence system and has Russian S-300s to protect its nuclear sites.
However, these are not thought to be robust enough to protect against Israel’s cutting-edge weapons, prompting Iran to pressure Russia into expediting a delivery of S-400 missile systems.
