U.S. President Joe Biden expressed hope that Iran would reconsider its stance regarding retaliation for the assassination of Ismail Haniya, head of the Hamas political bureau, in Tehran, as concerns grow that the conflict initiated by Israel in Gaza could escalate into a wider regional war. In response to a question from reporters about whether Iran would retreat from its vow to retaliate against Israel, Biden said, "I don’t know, I hope so."
This comes as Washington prepares to confront Iran's threats in response to Haniya's death. Regional tensions have intensified following Haniya's assassination on Wednesday, just a day after an Israeli raid in Beirut that resulted in the killing of Fouad Shukr, a senior military commander of the Iranian-aligned Hezbollah group.
Iran and Hamas blamed Israel for Haniya's death and, along with Hezbollah, vowed to take revenge. In a bid to bolster defenses in the Middle East in response to threats from Israel's enemies, the U.S. Department of Defense announced on Friday that it would deploy additional fighter jets and naval warships to the region.
Haniya's assassination is part of a series of targeted killings of prominent Hamas figures as the Gaza war approaches its eleventh month, raising fears that the conflict could evolve into a wider war in the Middle East. The United States and its international partners, including France, Britain, Italy, and Egypt, continued diplomatic communications on Saturday in an effort to prevent further regional escalation.
Israel has not confirmed whether it was behind Haniya's assassination, but Prime Minister Netanyahu stated earlier this week that Israel has dealt devastating blows to Iran's proxies recently, including Hamas and Hezbollah.
