Biden says he wouldn't support an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities | Israel attacks Lebanon news

Any Israeli response to Iran's rocket fire should be “proportionate,” says the US president.

US President Joe Biden has spoken out against any attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities in response to Tehran's missile attack on Israel.

Asked by reporters on Wednesday whether he would support such retaliation, Biden replied: “The answer is no.”

Biden's comments come a day after Iran fired around 180 ballistic missiles into Israel, its second attack on the country since April. Iran's recent attacks on Israeli military sites came in response to the assassinations of key Iran-aligned figures, including Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Iran would “pay” for the attack, which reportedly caused no serious casualties in Israel but killed a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank.

Analysts warned that Israel could seize the opportunity to launch attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities, a target its leaders have long had in mind.

“The risk of an (Israeli) attack on the nuclear program is particularly high because Iran's defense shield Hezbollah is down,” Ali Vaez, head of the Iran project at the International Crisis Group think tank, told Al Jazeera.

“US forces are already in the region to protect Israel, and for Israel this may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to deal with a major threat it has perceived in recent decades from Iran,” he said.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett specifically called for such an attack in a post on X, saying Israel must “act now to destroy Iran's nuclear program.”

“We have the justification. We have the tools,” Bennett said.

Biden calls for a “proportionate” response

In the wake of the Iranian attack, Biden emphasized that the US “fully supports Israel.”

Other U.S. officials warned that Iran would face “serious consequences,” with State Department spokesman Matthew Miller telling reporters he was “not ruling anything out.”

After speaking with allied leaders on Wednesday, Biden said he would not support an attack on Iran's nuclear facility. Any Israeli response to Iran, he told reporters, should be “proportionate,” a position shared by all nations in the G7 group, including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom.

The White House also said Biden and G7 leaders discussed coordinating a new round of sanctions against Iran.

The entire Middle East is in danger

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the attack was justified but Tehran did not seek war with Israel.

Iranian forces warned that Israel would threaten “great destruction” if it retaliated.

The escalation between two of the Middle East's strongest militaries – as war continues to rage in Gaza and Lebanon – has stoked fears of an even larger conflict in the region.

“The idea of ​​Iran and Israel acting against each other under the auspices of the United States will burn everyone in the Middle East and beyond,” said Marwan Bishara, senior political analyst at Al Jazeera.