Day 77 of the WarFriday, May 15, 2026
Day 77 — NYT: Israel + U.S. in 'Most Intense Preparations Yet' to Renew Iran Strikes Within a Week — Options: Bombing Expansion, Kharg Island Seizure, Commando Extraction of HEU — U.S. Officials Fear Independent Israeli Strike Without Warning
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Kharg Island
U.S. Officials 'Concerned Israel May Strike Iran Nuke Sites Without Much Warning' — Independent Israeli Track Risks Splitting the Coalition
- Within the broader NYT package, U.S. officials told the paper they are 'concerned Israel may strike Iran nuke sites without much warning' — i.e., independently of the coordinated Project Freedom + blockade campaign. The concern is operational and political: an independent Israeli decapitation strike could (a) collapse the still-formally-live ceasefire framework before the U.S. is ready, (b) trigger the IRGC Day 71 'enemy ships and U.S. Mideast sites' counter-package before U.S. force protection is set, (c) hand Iran a coalition-splitting narrative that the U.S. itself acted in bad faith on the MOU track. The implicit message from Washington is: Jerusalem is to coordinate, not pre-empt.
NYT: Israel and U.S. in 'Most Intense Preparations Yet' to Renew Strikes on Iran — Options: Bombing Campaign Expansion, Conquering Kharg Island Oil Hub, Commando Extraction of HEU From Underground Sites
Gulf & Naval- The New York Times reports that Israel and the United States are conducting their most intense preparations yet to renew attacks on Iran — possibly as soon as next week according to two Middle Eastern officials. The reported options on the table: (1) a more intense bombing campaign against military and infrastructure sites beyond the Operation Epic Fury target set; (2) conquering Iran's key oil export hub at Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf — a permanent territorial-seizure operation rather than strike-and-leave; (3) inserting commandos onto the Iranian mainland to extract nuclear material buried under the rubble of Operation Epic Fury targets, particularly the 440-kg HEU stockpile sites. The commando option is described as requiring 'thousands of supporting forces' to establish a perimeter and is expected to draw Iranian ground engagement.