TUNIS, February 3. /TASS/. If the US strikes Iran, Israel will become a legitimate target for retaliation as "they are one and the same," Ali Shamkhani, advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, told Al Mayadeen.

"Israel and the US are not two separate entities, they are one and the same," he said when asked about Tehran’s response to a US attack. "If the US strikes, then Israel, of course, will be involved, and our response must be proportionate," Shamkhani stated, adding the scale "depends on their actions and steps.

Trump said on January 26 that a "massive armada" was heading toward Iran. He expressed hope that Tehran would return to the negotiating table and conclude a "fair and equitable" deal, implying a complete renunciation of nuclear weapons. The US leader recalled that the United States carried out strikes on nuclear facilities in the Islamic republic last June in an operation dubbed Midnight Hammer. He warned that "the next attack will be far worse," urging not to let "that happen again."