Joe Biden is cutting his weekend at the beach short and racing back to the White House to deal with spiraling tensions in the Middle East that could lead to a full-scale war.

Biden, 81, is set to leave Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, home on Saturday afternoon so he can meet his national security team just 24 hours after he said an Iranian strike on Israel would happen ‘sooner rather than later’.

He was due to stay until Sunday, but will now return to Washington D.C. following reports Tehran was moving more than 100 cruise missiles and drones to prepare for an assault.

The White House said Biden is set to ‘consult with his national security team about events in the Middle East’ – the day after he delivered a one-word warning to Tehran over possible strikes: ‘Don’t.’  

It is unclear if Biden received new information that forced him to quickly cut his trip short, as he had previously indicated belief that an Iranian attack was being readied before he departed on Friday evening.

The Pentagon has already moved aircraft carriers into the Red Sea amid fears of a full-scale war, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant today to tell him he has ‘unwavering’ backing from the U.S.

Austin reiterated ‘that Israel could count on full U.S. support to defend Israel against any attacks by Iran and its regional proxies’, in a statement made shortly after Biden returned from his beach trip.

In response, Gallant said the nation is closely following ‘a planned attack’ from Iran.

After issuing his one-word message to Iran not to strike Israel, Biden affirmed that the US was committed to supporting one of its oldest allies despite simmering tensions with Benjamin Netanyahu’s government over the war in Gaza.