Jerusalem, Apr 15:
Israel will respond to Iran’s attack, but the scale of its response is not yet determined, CNN reported on Sunday, citing an unnamed Israeli official.
On Saturday night, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched over 300 drones and missiles at Israel in its first ever direct attack on Israeli territory, according to IDF data. The attack came in response to Israel’s airstrike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1.President Joe Biden warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the U.S. will not take part in a counter-offensive against Iran, an option Netanyahu’s war cabinet favors after a mass drone and missile attack on Israeli territory, according to officials.The threat of open warfare erupting between the arch Middle East foes and dragging in the United States put the region on edge, triggering calls for restraint from global powers and Arab nations.
“The Middle East is on the brink. The people of the region are confronting a real danger of a devastating full-scale conflict. Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told a Security Council meeting called on Sunday in response to the strikes.Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Robert Wood called on the council to unequivocally condemn Iran’s attack.
Still, Biden told Netanyahu the U.S. would not participate in any Israeli counter-offensive against Iran over the attack, a White House official said.U.S. State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also spoke to counterparts including in Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan, stressing the need to avoid escalation, the importance of a coordinated diplomatic response, and emphasizing the U.S. will continue to support Israel’s defense.
Iran launched the attack over Israeli strike on its embassy compound in Syria on April 1 that killed top Revolutionary Guards commanders and followed months of clashes between Israel and Iran’s regional allies, triggered by the war in Gaza.
This weekend’s massive Iranian attack has left only cursory damage to one military base, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has claimed, releasing footage purporting to show the subsequent repair work.
However, the attack by more than 300 missiles and drones caused only modest damage in Israel. Most were shot down by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system and with help from the U.S., Britain, France and Jordan.
As many as nine missiles penetrated Israeli defenses, ABC News wrote, citing a senior US official. Five ballistic missiles hit the Nevatim Air Base and damaged a C-130 transport plane, a runway and empty storage facilities, the channel said, while four more missiles hit the Negev Air Base.
Iranian media, however, claim they have managed to hit and destroy “important military targets.
