As part of an ongoing exercise between the Israeli Air Force and U.S. Central Command, American B-52 strategic bombers will drop missiles on targets in southern Israel on Wednesday, Time of Israel wrote.

Israel's Channel 12 reported that the targets in the Negev desert mimic Iranian nuclear facilities. According to him, the bombers will drop 100 tons of explosives to destroy the bunkers.

A U.S. official told U.S. media that there would be no mock Iranian targets during the exercise, assuring that the exercise was not aimed at any specific adversary, but rather was intended to send a message to Iran and China.

The Israel Defense Forces did not inform journalists about the exercise at all, except for a brief statement about the start of the military exercise, with some additional details, shortly after CENTCOM did so.

The U.S.-led exercise, involving more than 140 aircraft, 12 naval vessels and artillery systems from both countries, will conclude at the end of this week.

A senior U.S. Defense Department official said the exercise was intended to show adversaries such as Iran that Washington is not too distracted by the war in Ukraine and threats from China.

CENTCOM said the force would practice joint command and control, air operations in maritime surface warfare, search and rescue operations, electronic attacks, enemy air defense suppression, strike coordination and reconnaissance, and aerial interdiction.

According to U.S. media reports, 100 of the 142 aircraft involved in the exercise are American, including four B-52 strategic bombers, four F-35 fighters, 45 F/A-18 fighters and two MQ-9 Reaper drones.