“It’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act,” says UK Foreign Secretary.
By World Israel News Staff
American military and intelligence officials believe that Israel will strike Iran directly, rather than targeting Iranian proxies and assets in third countries, as a response to a massive aerial barrage launched by Tehran overnight Saturday.
Following the unprecedented aerial assault, which included some 300 drones, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles, Israel has vowed to respond, though it was initially unclear what such a counter-attack would look like.
But according to a CBS News report, White House officials are now under the impression that Israel will hit Iran directly, albeit in a limited fashion.
Washington is also concerned that Israel will not share details about the counter-attack beforehand, after President Biden pressured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to consider Israel and other countries’ successful repelling of the onslaught as a “win.”
The U.S. has made it clear that they will not support Israel in a counter-strike on Iran, but the Biden administration now fears that Jerusalem will proceed with retaliatory measures, regardless of Washington’s disapproval.
UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that he was convinced Israel is gearing up for a counter-attack, following a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem on Wednesday morning.
“It’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act,” he said. “We hope they do so in a way that does as little to escalate this as possible.”
Russia, which maintains close ties with Iran, has made a number of statements encouraging Israel and Iran to deescalate tensions and stand down.
“We are extremely concerned about the escalation of tensions in the region and we call on all countries in the region to exercise restraint. Further escalation is in no one’s interests,” said Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov during a media conference on Wednesday.