President Biden met with G7 leaders in an emergency session Sunday as his administration said it will leave it up to Israel to decide how to respond to Iran’s blistering drone attack — and Iranian and Israeli authorities prepared for their next moves.
“President Biden spoke by secure video with the leaders of the G7 today,” the White House wrote in a post on X above a photo of the commander in chief and his top diplomat, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during the meeting, with other heads of member countries appearing on a video screen behind them.
“The leaders condemned Iran’s unprecedented attack against Israel and reaffirmed the G7’s commitment to Israel’s security,” the post said, referring to the group of leaders from global powerhouses including the US, UK, France and Japan.
Hawkish Israeli government ministers had reportedly called for an immediate retaliatory strike after Saturday night’s attack on Israel, which saw hundreds of drones and missiles launched into the Jewish nation. Most of the armed drones were intercepted in the air.
But those plans were shelved in favor of more talks — after a phone call between Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the New York Times.
Biden warned Netanyahu during the call that the US would not take part in a counterstrike against Iran, a senior administration has said. Leaders around the world also swiftly issued statements condemning Iran’s actions but also expressing fears of a further escalation to the hostilities.
Biden also told Bibi “that Israel demonstrated a remarkable capacity to defend against and defeat even unprecedented attacks — sending a clear message to its foes that they cannot effectively threaten the security of Israel,” the White House said in a statement.
Israel’s war cabinet was meeting Sunday as the regional war threatened to create further global chaos.
Ahead of the meeting, Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz vowed that his country would take actions it deems appropriate in response to Iran’s aerial onslaught.
“We will build a regional coalition and exact the price from Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us,” he said.
Biden convened a meeting of the G7 on Sunday “to coordinate a united diplomatic response to Iran’s brazen attack,” officials said.
But in a saber-rattling statement, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi warned Israel and its allies against undertaking any “reckless behavior” in response to Saturday’s attack, during which approximately 99% of the 300 missiles and suicide drones were swatted down by Israel’s advanced “David’s Sling” air-defense system.
“If the Zionist regime or its supporters demonstrate reckless behaviour, they will receive a decisive and much stronger response,” Raisi said in a statement Sunday.
Speaking on “Good Morning America” on Sunday, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Israel “demonstrated a superior military capability” in fending off the airstrike but expressed concerns that their response could lead to the conflict spreading.
“We don’t want to see the situation escalate further, we’re not looking for a war with Iran,” Kirby said.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, Israel, along with its allies, thwarted Iran’s attack that included 170 drones, 120 ballistic missiles, and 30 cruise missiles with an approximately 99% interception rate.
