The American newspaper "The Wall Street Journal" reported that three officials from President Joe Biden's administration stated that Israel may respond to the Iranian attack today, Monday. The newspaper's sources indicated that the U.S. President, during a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, attempted to dissuade Israel from a hasty response. The officials confirmed that the United States would not participate in any offensive operation against Iran and would work to form a united diplomatic front with its allies in an attempt to prevent hostilities from escalating into an open war that could engulf the Middle East and involve them.
Additionally, the American news network "ABC News" quoted Israeli army spokesman Peter Lerner saying that military officials had presented the government with a range of response options to the Iranian attack. Lerner added in statements to reporters in Tel Aviv that Israel's response might involve a military strike or might not, noting that the Israeli government would determine its next steps today or in the coming days.
Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday evening in response to an Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria on April 1. Biden stated in a release issued late Saturday night after the Iranian attack that he had informed Netanyahu that Israel "has demonstrated remarkable capability to defend itself against unprecedented attacks."
Biden did not mention in the statement whether he had discussed the possibility of an Israeli response or U.S. intervention with Netanyahu. A senior U.S. administration official said, "We believe that Israel has the freedom to act to protect and defend itself, in Syria or elsewhere. This has been a long-standing policy and remains in place, but we do not see ourselves participating in anything like that."
John Kirby, the senior national security spokesman at the White House, told ABC on Sunday that the United States would continue to support Israel in defending itself but does not want war with Iran. In response to a question about whether the United States would support an Israeli response to Iran, Kirby said that "our commitment is firm" regarding defending Israel and "helping Israel defend itself." He added, "As the president has said many times, we are not seeking a broader war in the region. We are not seeking war with Iran. I think I’ll leave it at that." He reiterated, "We do not seek to escalate tensions in the region, nor do we want the conflict to widen."
