Iran’s attack on Israel is igniting fears of a wider conflict with blowback against Americans, prompting the U.S. government to begin preparing for Israel’s next steps while asking the Jewish state to refrain from escalation.
U.S. forces helped Israel down nearly all the Iranian regime’s missiles and drones in the weekend attack, and the Biden administration said it is eager to prevent the conflict from growing.
President Biden instructed U.S. forces about 10 days ago to defend Israel to the maximum extent possible and began moving assets to positions to support Israel, according to a senior administration official.
“If successful, this attack could have caused an uncontrollable escalation, a broad regional conflict, something we have worked day and night to avoid since Oct. 7,” the senior official told reporters on Sunday.
Iran‘s largely failed attack occurred at an increasingly perilous time for Israel. The weekend onslaught came after an Israeli strike in Syria that killed Iranian officials earlier this month.
The back-and-forth is the latest salvo threatening to broaden a deadly conflict that began when Iran-backed Hamas terrorists attacked Israeli civilians six months ago.
Mr. Biden spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the U.S. learned Iran’s attack had been almost wholly frustrated, according to a U.S. official speaking to reporters Sunday.
The president reportedly told Mr. Netanyahu that the U.S. does not support a counterattack.
Mr. Biden’s team is now working to stop the war from spreading, according to White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.
“The president’s been clear: We don’t want to see this escalate, we’re not looking for a wider war with Iran,” Mr. Kirby told NBC on Sunday. “I think the coming hours and days will tell us a lot.”
U.S. national security officials counted more than 300 munitions used in Iran’s attack, including more than 100 ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles.
The majority of the missiles were shot down by Israel, and the U.S. assisted in disabling other weapons, according to U.S. officials.
Israeli officials acknowledged only minor damage to an airbase and one civilian casualty, a seriously wounded 7-year-old girl in southern Israel.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels, an Iran-linked group, tried to join the fight but were prevented from doing so, a senior official said without elaborating on precisely what that meant.
U.S. officials are waiting to see Israel’s next steps but do not believe the Jewish state is eager for a larger conflict.
“Israel’s made clear to us they’re not looking for a significant escalation with Iran,” a U.S. official said Sunday. “That’s not what they’re looking for, they’re looking to protect themselves and defend themselves.”
Israel’s War Cabinet met for several hours Sunday in Tel Aviv.
“We will build a regional coalition and collect the price from Iran, in the way and at the time that suits us,” said War Cabinet member Benny Gantz after the meeting.
For its part, the Iranian regime said it considered the matter closed, as a proportionate retaliation for the Damascus strike. But it warned of escalation if Israel struck back.
Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said in a post on X that Iran has “no intention of continuing defensive operations” at this point unless it is attacked.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard also warned the U.S. against “any support or participation in harming Iran’s interests.”
Mr. Biden said Saturday he lauded Israel’s self-defense and touted America’s ironclad commitment to Israel during his conversation with Mr. Netanyahu.
The president also assembled the Group of Seven leaders, who represent the West’s seven largest economies, on Sunday to chart a shared response to the Iranian regime’s attack.
The G7 leaders, representing the U.S., Germany, Japan, Britain, France, Italy and Canada, issued a joint statement on Sunday condemning the attack and saying escalation must be avoided.
“We will continue to work to stabilize the situation and avoid further escalation,” the leaders’ statement said. “In this spirit, we demand that Iran and its proxies cease their attacks, and we stand ready to take further measures now and in response to further destabilizing initiatives.”
The United Nations Security Council was meeting Sunday evening on the attack.
Congress is also preparing a response to the Iranian attack, with House Majority Leader Steve Scalise saying lawmakers were changing the legislative calendar for the week ahead to prioritize support for Israel.
“The House of Representatives stands strongly with Israel, and there must be consequences for this unprovoked attack,” Mr. Scalise said on X.
Republican leadership in the House is debating the appropriate response.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul said that party leaders led by House Speaker Mike Johnson will meet Sunday evening to discuss what to do.
Mr. Johnson told Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures” that he and Republicans understand the necessity of standing with Israel and he would try this week to advance the aid.
Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, said on Saturday that the best way to help Israel was for the House to advance legislation providing aid to Ukraine and Israel.
However, Republicans are far more divided politically on aiding Kyiv than helping the Jewish state.
Mr. McCaul, Texas Republican, also suggested Israel could target Iran’s weapons-manufacturing facilities as a proportionate response.
“I think one option would be to take out the facilities where these drones and rockets came from, and also destroy the manufacturing facilities that build the drones and rockets, not just for Israel’s sake but also for Ukraine’s sake because these rockets and these drones are being bought by Russia, and they’re killing Ukrainians every day,” Mr. McCaul said Sunday.
“What happened in Israel last night happens in Ukraine every night,” he said.
The Biden administration’s handling of Iran and developing events in Israel have irked some key Republican decision-makers on Capitol Hill.
Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Republican, complained that Mr. Biden’s team was undermining Israel’s self-defense.
“What I don’t understand is why Joe Biden and the administration would leak to the media the contents of a conversation in which he tells Netanyahu he doesn’t think [Israel] should respond at all,” Mr. Rubio told CNN. “It is the continuing part of this public game that they are playing.”
Mr. Johnson said Saturday he would work with the White House on a proper response but he said the Biden administration had undermined Israel and appeased Iran, which “contributed to these terrible developments.”
U.S. assets overseas are not the only ones vigilantly watching for dangerous fallout from the Iranian regime’s attack on Israel.
American police departments in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, D.C., all published alerts on Saturday saying they were closely monitoring the attack and committed to defending “houses of worship.”
• This article is based in part on wire service reports.
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.