‘Potential For a Wider War’: Fox’s Jennifer Griffin Warns She’s ‘Never Seen Things So Tense’ In Her 30 Years Covering the Middle East

Fox News’s veteran national security correspondent, Jennifer Griffin, joined Neil Cavuto on Fox Business on Friday morning to detail the rising tensions in the Middle East and the possible Iranian retaliation against Israel that has the region on edge.

“Hi Neil, I’ve been covering the Middle East for 30 years, as you know, and I have never seen things so tense with the potential for a wider war breaking out between Israel and Iran, which could draw the U.S. and others into a wider Middle East war,” Griffin began starkly, adding:

Until now, the U.S. has been facing Iranian proxies. But in the wake of the Israeli strike on April 1st in Damascus, Syria, that killed the Iranian Revolutionary Guard general and six other top Iranian commanders responsible for arming Iran’s proxy groups, Iran appears poised to avenge that attack with a massive show of force targeting Israeli territory.

In recent days, the U.S. has pre-positioned additional military assets in the region. The attacks by the Houthis, supported by Iran, continue to threaten U.S. ships in the Red Sea. Tensions are at an all-time high. U.S. officials tell me that they have seen movement suggesting that Iranian ballistic missiles could launch any day. Israeli warplanes are patrolling the skies along the borders, and Israel’s military has been put on high alert for a massive missile and drone strike that is expected to emanate from Iran. The U.S. embassy told Americans who work for the embassy not to leave Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, or Be’er Sheva in coming days and to avoid travel to the north or south of Israel.

Griffin added that “the head of U.S. Central Command, General Erik Kurilla, was in Israel to meet with Israel’s Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, who praised General Kurilla as a true friend of Israel. General Kurilla briefed his defense counterparts on the latest intelligence and is still in the region.”

After playing a quick soundbite from National Security Council spokesman Admiral John Kirby, Griffin noted that Iran’s posturing ahead of a possible strike on Israel may mean there is yet room for de-escalation.

“What’s unusual, Neil, is for Iran to telegraph its response to such a degree. It usually relies on proxies and terrorism, with the U.S. releasing what is clearly very specific intelligence through unnamed officials. You can’t rule out that Iran will look for an off-ramp to avoid a war that could draw on U.S. forces. All eyes are now on the supreme leader of Iran, and it will. We’ll know more in the coming days,” Griffin concluded.

Watch the clip above via Fox Business.