WASHINGTON – The White House on Friday declined to say whether the United States would respond if Iran acted on its “very credible” threat to attack Israel. This came as concerns grew that such an attack could spark a wider war across the Middle East.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters that the Biden administration believes the Iranian government’s warnings against the Jewish state are “actionable,” but that if an attack were to take place. He did not elaborate on what action the United States would take.
“We certainly have in mind what we think is a very common and very credible threat from Iran in terms of a potential attack against Israel,” Kirby said. Ta. “We’re constantly communicating with the Israeli side and trying to help them protect themselves from these attacks, but we don’t want to engage in armchair quarterback behavior in public.”
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According to Iranian state media, any attack by Israel in Damascus on April 1 that killed General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, who was commanding militias in Syria and Lebanon, and at least six other Iranian militants Iran and U.S. officials said the attack was in retaliation for an attack near its embassy.
Zahedi is the highest-ranking Iranian military official to be killed since the US assassination of General Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in January 2020.
On Thursday, a Pentagon spokesperson, Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, also declined to answer questions about a possible U.S. response to an attack from Iran, saying, “I don’t get into hypotheticals.”
“We are certainly monitoring the situation closely,” he said. “I don’t have a crystal ball, so I’m not going to go into specific intelligence.”
Rich Goldberg, a former top official for President Trump’s countermeasures against Iranian weapons of mass destruction and senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said the United States is focused on preventing Iranian drones and missiles from reaching Israeli territory. he told the Post.
“My understanding, through sources in both countries, is that cooperation between U.S. Central Command and the Israel Defense Forces is currently at a maximalist and unprecedented level, so we are currently in a state of greatly enhanced cooperation regarding threats. ” Goldberg said.
The Biden administration has declined to talk about possible responses to Iran, but Goldberg said it would be highly unusual for Israel to ask the U.S. for help if retaliation is needed.
“Israel has never asked the United States to fight or intervene on its behalf, and it would be shocking to learn that it did.”
Still, Goldberg noted that the Pentagon has assets in the Middle East that could help bring down missiles from Iran if needed.
“To the extent that the United States is providing missile defense support, it is in accordance with U.S. policy principles and 20 years of military exercises between the U.S. and Israeli militaries, and to me that is appropriate,” he said. .
The calculus is likely to change if Iran takes action against U.S. forces in the region.
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“It would be imprudent not to review our position in the region and make sure we are adequately prepared,” Mr Kirby said on Friday.
The Iranian government reportedly told its allies last week that it would attack American military bases if the United States were involved in fighting between Iran and Israel. Axios reports Friday, citing an anonymous U.S. official.
“The message from the Iranian side was that we attack those who attack us, so don’t mess with us, and we’re not going to play with you,” one official told Axios.
Goldberg also noted that there appeared to be “signs of major escalation prepared by the Israeli side in the event of a direct missile attack from Iran.”
“It is in the form of a cruise missile, which is one of the medium-range or medium-range ballistic missiles,” and “has the potential to cause large-scale destruction.”
The Iranian regime has not made a final decision on when or how to launch an attack. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
“The attack plan is in front of the supreme leader, who is still considering the political risks,” Iranian adviser Ayatollah Khamenei told the media.
