The US aims to “turn the temperature down” in the Middle East amid fears of an Iranian retaliatory attack on Israel, according to the country’s UN ambassador.
On Tuesday, Linda Thomas-Greenfield addressed the UN Security Council in New York, stating that the US seeks to “deter and defend against any future attack and avoid regional conflict.”
Concerns have risen that Iran might retaliate against Israel following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July, an act Israel has not claimed responsibility for.
US President Joe Biden suggested that reaching a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza could help deter Iran from launching an attack on Israel.
“That’s my expectation but we’ll see,” he said when asked by a reporter on Tuesday.
“We’ll see what Iran does and we’ll see what happens if there’s any attack, but I’m not giving up,” he said, while exiting his plane during a visit to New Orleans, Louisiana.
A new round of ceasefire talks is set to take place in either Doha or Cairo on Thursday. However, according to reports from the New York Times and Sky News, Hamas official Ahmad Abdul Hadi has stated that Hamas will not participate in the talks.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has postponed his travel plans to the Middle East to join the negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire deal. International mediators from the US, Egypt, and Qatar are working towards an agreement that would involve the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
Additionally, Washington has approved new arms sales to Israel worth $20 billion (£15.5 billion). The state department announced that Israel will purchase 50 F-15 fighter jets, 33,000 tank cartridges, up to 50,000 mortar cartridges, and new military cargo vehicles. Delivery of the aircraft is expected to begin in 2029.
During the Security Council meeting in New York, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield called for the finalization of a ceasefire deal.
“A broader regional conflict is not inevitable,” she said.
“The United States’ overall goal remains to turn the temperature down in the region, deter and defend against any future attacks, and avoid regional conflict,” she added.
“That starts with finalising a deal for an immediate ceasefire with hostage release in Gaza. We need to get this over the finish line.”
But Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, accused the Security Council of not doing enough to stop Israel’s military operation in Gaza.
“Wake up. Stop finding excuses. Stop imagining that you can reason with the Israeli government so it stops killing civilians by the thousands, imposing famine, torturing prisoners, colonising and annexing our land, all while you appeal to them, call on them, demand them to stop,” Mr Mansour said.
Israeli ambassador Gilad Erdan said the Israeli military took every possible measure to minimise collateral damage and accused Hamas of using civilians as human shields.
He also criticised the Security Council for not condemning the actions of Iran.
“As we speak here now, millions of Israelis are preparing for a direct Iranian attack, just as they did in April. Iran’s aggression threatens the entire region with war.”
Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza to dismantle Hamas following an unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages being taken.
Since then, over 39,920 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Additionally, hundreds have died in the nearly daily exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and the Israeli military across the Israel-Lebanon border since the conflict began.
Amid efforts to de-escalate tensions through international diplomacy, Iran dismissed calls from the UK and other Western countries on Monday to refrain from retaliating against Israel for the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Although Israel has not confirmed its involvement in Haniyeh’s assassination, it has put its military on its highest alert level.
The US has cautioned that it is preparing for “a significant set of attacks” by Iran or its proxies, potentially as soon as this week, and has increased its military presence in the Middle East to support Israel.