By Eric Vandenbroeck and co-workers

US President Joe Biden knew about Israel's plan to bomb Tehran on Saturday morning and even encouraged it as a way to deter further attacks.

It was Iran’s ballistic missile strikes on Israel on October 1 that started to raise fears of an all-out war in the Middle East. The deepening spiral of bloodshed began on September 17 and 18 with the detonation across Lebanon of thousands of pagers and two-way radios used by Hezbollah operatives, one analyst deemed the unprecedented Israeli operation “the most extensive physical supply chain attack in history.” Ongoing airstrikes in Beirut and southern Lebanon have marked the most significant Israeli barrage in 11 months of tit-for-tat escalation. On September 27, Israel dealt Hezbollah a devastating blow by killing its leader Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike on a Beirut suburb. Despite reeling from these latest reverses and the evisceration of its command structure, the Shiite militia continues to lob missiles at Israel. Stunned and outraged, Iran, Hezbollah’s patron, fired around 200 ballistic missiles at Israel; at least one person was killed in the West Bank. Iranians are now bracing for Israeli retaliation. The cycle of violence, it appears, is far from over.

A senior White House official announced that the president worked directly with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 'to design a response that served to deter further acts against Israel while reducing the risk of further escalation. The official also claimed the White House "worked with the Israelis over recent weeks to encourage Israel to conduct a response that was targeted and proportional with low risk of civilian harm."

But the Israeli military has already issued a chilling ultimatum to Iran if the country decides to retaliate for the airstrikes.

Explosions were heard across Tehran as the Israeli military announced they launched retaliatory strikes in the region.

The official also claimed the White House 'worked with the Israelis over recent weeks to encourage Israel to conduct a response that was targeted and proportional with low risk of civilian harm.

IDF forces said they were conducting 'precise strikes' on military targets in Iran in response to what it called 'the continuous attacks from the regime in Iran against Israel'.

Explosions were also reported in Iraq and Syria.

It announced hours later that the strikes were 'completed' and 'the mission was fulfilled.' The Middle East has been on edge in anticipation of the Israeli retaliation for Iran's attack on October 1, in which around 200 ballistic missiles were fired at Israel in Iran's second direct attack on Israel in six months.

Iran may think twice before striking back, Malcolm Davis, senior analyst at the Australia Strategic Policy Institute, says:

Israel’s strike on Saturday is embarrassing for Iran but Tehran may yet refrain from a forceful retaliation, a defense expert said.

Malcolm Davis, senior analyst at the Australia Strategic Policy Institute, said that while Israel had kept its attack “limited” and “precise,” it was “certainly embarrassing” for Iran.

“But the question is, do they want to go down the path of launching a retaliation against Israel for this particular attack and then seeing Israel say ‘Fine, bets are off,’ and going after the Iranian nuclear facilities and going after the Iranian oil facilities,” he said.

Israel could also target members of Tehran’s leadership, he added.

“So I think that Iran’s best interest here is to essentially take this hit and back down and accept the fact that Israel delivered this attack,” he said.

 

 

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