Aware of the danger of an Israeli response, he nevertheless insisted: “We are totally ready to defend our land.”
This raises the more important question of how Israel will respond, which could raise the prospect of a massive conflagration in the region. According to Axios, Biden signaled to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the United States would not join any retaliation by Israel following Iran’s first-ever direct attack against it.
The Iranian strikes took place “against a backdrop of declining global sympathy for Israel and growing tensions in relations between Biden and Netanyahu,” said Carmiel Arbit, an analyst at the Atlantic Council, a think tank. “As was the case with Gaza, further escalation could deplete this public support. »
Despite strained relations between Biden and Netanyahu, “the shared commitment to confronting the threat posed by Iran also runs much deeper than any differences the two countries may have regarding the future of the Palestinian territories,” said Arbit.
It is nevertheless likely that the United States will encourage Israel to respond with restraint in a continued effort to try to prevent a spiral of regional war. This would undoubtedly run counter to Israel’s desire to restore deterrence and assert itself in what it sees as a war on terrorism that has encroached on its sovereign borders in an unprecedented manner. added Arbit.
In a statement on Saturday, the Israeli leader appeared to signal a a military response is likely, saying: “We have determined a clear principle: whoever harms us, we will harm him. We will defend ourselves against any threat.
Netanyahu added that any action he orders will be balanced. This may not reassure Israel’s Western allies, who fear regional escalation above all else – and disagree with Netanyahu on Israel’s military actions following the attack of Hamas against Israel last October.
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