Senior administration officials have disclosed that the White House has cautioned Israel against engaging in any retaliatory strikes on Iran, asserting that the US will not participate in such actions.
Iran launched over 300 drones and missiles at Israel overnight, citing retaliation for an April 1 strike on its consulate in Syria. The majority of these weapons were successfully intercepted by Israeli, US, and allied forces before reaching their intended targets.
President Joe Biden reportedly advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to carefully consider their response. According to a senior administration official speaking to reporters on Sunday, Biden urged Netanyahu to strategically evaluate the situation. This marked the first direct attack by Iran on Israel.
The Biden administration views Israel as having emerged favorably from the exchange, particularly as Israeli military superiority was evidenced by the interception of approximately 99% of the missiles, drones, and cruise missiles launched by Iran.
US aircraft and naval vessels played a significant role in downing Iranian projectiles, including more than 80 drones and at least six ballistic missiles, with additional attempts thwarted over Iraq and Yemen.
Amid heightened tension following the attack, Biden and Netanyahu engaged in a conversation during which approximately 100 ballistic missiles were simultaneously aimed at Israel.
During the call, the two leaders had a discussion “about how to slow things down and think through things”, with Mr Biden emphasising that Israel has “gotten the best of it”.
The official declined to say, however, whether the White House warned against a significant response, saying only that “it is a calculation the Israelis have to make”.
During a series of television interviews on US networks earlier in the day, national security spokesman John Kirby emphasized multiple times that the US has communicated to Israel its intention to prevent a broader conflict.
The senior administration also confirmed that a similar message has been conveyed to Iran through diplomatic channels.
Both Mr. Kirby and the official affirmed that while the US remains committed to defending Israel, it has opted out of joining any Israeli retaliation.
This position has drawn criticism from certain US lawmakers and former officials across the political spectrum.
Ohio Republican Representative Mike Turner, chair of the House Intelligence Committee, argued that Mr. Kirby’s remarks regarding de-escalation were misguided.
“It is already escalating, and the administration needs to respond,” he said on NBC.
And John Bolton, who served as national security adviser under President Donald Trump, said the US should join Israel if its chose to launch a retaliatory attack on Iran’s nuclear programme.
“I think it [Israel] can destroy or disable a very substantial part [of the programme], if not totally,” he told NewsNation. “Frankly, if Israel is prepared to go after Iran’s nuclear programme, the United States should proudly join them.”
In the wake of Iran’s attack on Israel, Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that the body would “try again” to pass military aid for Israel.
Previous attempts to send more aid to Israel have stalled amid Democratic calls that the aid package should also include assistance for Taiwan and Ukraine.
Mick Mulroy, a former Deputy Secretary of Defence for the Middle East, told the BBC that aid for Israel should be passed “without delay”.
“If it wasn’t for US security assistance, we could be facing a major regional war,” he said. “That supplement and the ones for Ukraine and Taiwan are in our national security interest. It is not charity. It’s part of the US national defence.”