Biden urges Israel to show restraint after attack on Iran

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States on Sunday emphasized its role in helping Israel thwart Iran’s air attack as President Joe Biden convened Group of Seven leaders in an effort to prevent regional escalation broader and coordinate a global rebuke against Tehran.

The United States helped Israel shoot down dozens of drones and missiles fired by Iran on Saturday, the first time it launched a direct military attack against Israel. Israeli authorities said 99% of incoming weapons were shot down without causing significant damage.

US officials said that despite the high interception rate, Iran’s intention was to “destroy and cause casualties” and that if successful, the strikes would have caused an “uncontrollable” escalation across the Middle East. U.S. officials said Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in an effort to contain tensions, that Washington would not participate in any offensive action against Iran, and that the president told Netanyahu “very clearly” that we need to think carefully and strategically.” » on the risks of escalation.

Efforts to encourage Israel to exercise restraint reflect ongoing U.S. efforts to scale back Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, now in its seventh month, and to do more to protect civilian lives in the territory.

While the United States and its allies had been preparing for days for such an attack, the shootings were at the “high end” of what was planned, according to the officials, who were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter. the question and spoke on condition of anonymity.

At one point, at least 100 Iranian ballistic missiles were in the air simultaneously with only a few minutes of flight to Israel, the officials said. Biden and senior officials monitored the firings and attempted interceptions in real time in the White House Situation Room. Officials said there was “relief” in the room when they saw that the missile defense efforts had been successful.

A senior U.S. military official said U.S. aircraft had shot down more than 70 drones and cruise missiles, while U.S. destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean had shot down between four and six ballistic missiles and a battery of U.S. Patriot missiles in Iraq in had downed one more.

“At my direction, to support the defense of Israel, the U.S. military has moved ballistic missile defense aircraft and destroyers to the region over the past week,” Biden said in a statement Saturday evening. “Through these deployments and the extraordinary skills of our military, we helped Israel destroy almost every incoming drone and missile. »

Administration officials said the call demonstrated that despite differences over the war in Gaza, the U.S. commitment to Israel’s defense was “ironclad” and that the United States would deploy again a similar effort if necessary.

The officials rejected the idea that Iran intentionally gave Israel and the United States time to prepare for an attack, but said they took advantage of the time Iran needed before be ready to launch the assault to prepare their response. Officials said Iran communicated to the United States as the attack unfolded Saturday evening that what it saw was the entirety of its response. The message was sent through the Swiss government since the two countries do not have direct diplomatic relations.

Biden, in a Saturday evening phone call with Netanyahu, urged Israel to claim victory for its defense prowess, as the president aimed to persuade the United States’ closest ally in the Middle East to not undertake a larger retaliatory strike against Iran, the officials said.

“I told him that Israel had demonstrated a remarkable ability to defend itself and defeat even unprecedented attacks – sending a clear message to its enemies that they cannot effectively threaten Israel’s security,” he said. Biden said in his statement after the call.

Biden had a call on Sunday with King Abdullah II of Jordan during which the king said any “escalation of measures” by Israel would lead to wider conflict in the region, according to the Royal Court. The White House said the situation in Gaza was discussed and leaders reaffirmed their cooperation “to find a path to ending the crisis as quickly as possible.”

The president also spoke with some of the U.S. forces involved in shooting down Iranian drones.

After the G7 video conference on Sunday, the leaders issued a joint statement “unequivocally condemning in the strongest terms” Iran’s direct attack while expressing “our full solidarity and support for Israel” and reaffirming ” our commitment to its safety.

The group of advanced democracies – the United States, Italy, Japan, Germany, France, Britain and Canada – also said that Iran, “through its actions, has taken a further step towards destabilizing the region and risks to provoke an uncontrollable regional escalation. They said their countries “are prepared to take additional measures now and in response to new destabilizing initiatives.”

A senior U.S. administration official said some countries have discussed listing Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization and applying new sanctions against Tehran, but no final decision has been made. has been taken.

The war between Israel and Hamas was mentioned in the G7 statement, with the leaders saying they would strengthen “our cooperation to end the crisis in Gaza, including by continuing to work towards a ceasefire immediate and lasting release of hostages by Hamas, and increased humanitarian aid to Palestinians in need.

The United States and Israel had been preparing for an attack for days after Iran announced it would retaliate for a suspected Israeli strike this month on an Iranian consular building in Syria that killed 12 people, including two generals Iranians from the elite Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, criticized the White House for “leaking to the press” that Biden told Netanyahu to achieve victory and not retaliate.

Rubio told CNN’s “State of the Union” that it was “part of the White House’s efforts to appease” people who were calling for a cease-fire in Gaza.