JERUSALEM (AFP) — Newly appointed Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Monday said Iran was “more exposed than ever to strikes on its nuclear facilities.”

“We have the opportunity to achieve our most important goal — to thwart and eliminate the existential threat to the State of Israel,” Katz added on X.

Israel has for years accused Iran of seeking to build nuclear weapons, but the Islamic Republic has repeatedly denied the claims.

The United States in 2018 under President Donald Trump — who won re-election last week — withdrew from a 2015 nuclear accord between Tehran and Western powers including Washington that sought to limit Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

Tehran has since enriched uranium up to 60 percent, just 30 percent below atomic weapons grade.

Israel and Iran have traded tit-for-tat missile strikes, triggering fears of a wider Middle East war.

Iran twice fired missiles directly on Israeli territory this year, prompting Israel to retaliate, most recently on 26 October when it hit Iranian military facilities.

Israel has warned Iran against responding to last month’s attack.