Biden Told Bibi to 'Take the W' and Not Retaliate After Iran Attack, But It Looks Like It's Still Coming
Israel doesn't generally hold back.
So, in the wake of the attack on Israel from Iran with drones and missiles on Saturday, you might have supposed that there would be an immediate response from Israel.
That's when the Biden team intervened. Joe Biden had a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which he told Netanyahu that Israel should "take the win" from the successful defense against the more than 300 missiles and drones. Basically, Biden's position is that it was okay for Iran to attack Israel but they shouldn't respond. He also said, as we reported, that the US wouldn't participate in any offensive action.
Now it's being reported that that the call stopped a retaliatory strike, at least for the moment.
Israel's decision to retaliate early Sunday morning against Iran's massive attack was halted after a phone call between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden. US officials considered Israel's interception of more than 300 drones and missiles as a significant strategic victory that should not necessitate further retaliation, The New York Times reported, citing US officials.
The Biden administration advised Israel to exercise caution and avoid further escalation in the Middle East following its successful defense against Iranian airstrikes. [....]
A retaliatory strike initially proposed by cabinet members was called off following a phone call between Netanyahu and Biden on Saturday. This decision came in light of the relatively minor damage caused by Iran’s attacks. The specifics of the conversation between Biden and Netanyahu were not disclosed by officials.
Israel's war cabinet still met to consider a response. Reportedly, there's a split on the timing and the proportion of the proposed action, but the majority favors a response.
The five-member cabinet, in which Benjamin Netanyahu, defence minister Yoav Gallant and cabinet minister Benny Gantz have decision-making powers, met earlier today to discuss the attack - which saw over 330 missiles and drones fired at Israel. This echoes what an Israeli source indicated earlier - that the war cabinet had decided it would respond to Iran’s attack, but no final decisions have been made on the detail. "It is clear Israel will respond, the question is when and at what scale," an Israeli official told our partner network NBC News
One of the war cabinet ministers, Benny Gantz, said they would exact a price from Iran.
So, we shall have to see what the response is. But it doesn't sound like Biden was fully able to stop a response.
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