Israel closes schools in anticipation of Iran strike: Officials

Israel will close schools and limit trips country-wide in anticipation of retaliatory strikes from Iran, military officials said Saturday.

The temporary closures, announced by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief military spokesperson Daniel Hagari, come as fears ramp up that an attack is imminent after Iran's embassy compound in Damascus, Syria, was hit earlier this month by an Israeli strike. The airstrike killed seven Iranian military advisers, including three senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) members. 

The news comes as fears have ramped up among Israel's allies over the looming attack, including the U.S. President Biden announced Saturday he would return from his weekend trip to Delaware to “consult with his national security team” about the ongoing situation in the Middle East.

It also follows Biden's suggestion Friday that the attack from Tehran could come “sooner than later.” 

Members of the IRGC, a group independent of Iran's army, rappelled down from a helicopter onto an Israeli-linked container ship on Saturday, seizing the Portuguese-flagged vessel and its crew. The Biden administration called on Iran to free the ship and its crew on Saturday. 

“We call on Iran to release the vessel & its international crew immediately,” Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the National Security Council, said on social media platform X. 

In response to the growing threat and as the war in Gaza recently passed six months, Americans have been warned to avoid traveling within Israel.

U.S. warships have also been moved to positions in the region and The State Department dished out a security warning to U.S. government employees to refrain from traveling outside of the greater Tel Aviv area, Jerusalem and the southern city of Be’er Sheva.