US 'begged' 'Israel' not to strike Iran; no one thinks it's good

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Politico
20 Apr 2024 00:25
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The Biden administration chooses to remain silent until "the dangerous moment" passes without "escalating into all-out war."

US President Joe Biden speaks at the IBEW Construction and Maintenance Conference, on Friday, April 19, 2024, in Washington. (AP)

A report by Politico on Friday highlighted that the Biden administration aims to quell the situation by maintaining silence regarding the Israeli response to Iran, in the hope of preventing a dangerous escalation into full-scale war.

The report added that officials from within Washington have reportedly been instructed to remain silent regarding "Israel's" Friday strikes on Isfahan, according to three US officials and an Israeli official.

The officials pointed out that "Israel" has refrained from commenting on the response hoping that the rhetoric subsides and that the region might also de-escalate.

“No one wants to escalate things,” said the Israeli official.

'Washington playing it safe'

According to Politico, the only on-record confirmation that "Israel" was behind the strike has come from Italy’s foreign minister. Antonio Tajani, who was hosting Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a G7 meeting in Capri, said Friday, “The United States was informed [at] the last minute” by "Israel" that it was about to attack.

Blinken later stated, “I’m not going to speak to anything other than to say we were not involved in any offensive operations.”

National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby, who is typically ever-present following pivotal moments in global crises, did not address reporters, noted Politico, adding that White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre fielded numerous questions during the daily briefing, repeatedly stating the need to be cautious about commenting on the attack.

“I just don’t have anything to share,” she said.

US officials criticize Israeli response

Most officials who spoke to Politico expressed relief that "Israel" limited its attack and another expressed his frustration that "Israel" did not consider Biden's warnings and exercise greater caution.

“The US begged [Israel] not to do it, and literally no one from the Pentagon to the Joint Chiefs to the CIA to the intel community thinks this is a good thing,” said one of the US officials, adding that "it’s truly embarrassing how much Israel does not listen to us, but yet this doesn’t keep President Biden from blind fealty.”

“Israel is playing a dangerous game, and it feels like Biden is putting us in the crosshairs,” the official added.

Dive deeper

Earlier on Thursday, Iranian sources confirmed to Al Mayadeen that no external aggression on Iran occurred after Friday midnight.

Following circulating news on Western-based media outlets, regarding a supposed Israeli attack on Iran, sources told Al Mayadeen that such an event did not occur. Instead, Iranian air defenses repelled a relatively small drone attack in Tabriz and Isfahan, which were likely launched domestically.

What is being circulated about an Israeli attack on Iran are lies and are part of a misinformation war, according to our sources.

This came after Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force announced that it targeted Israeli positions in occupied Palestine with dozens of drones and missiles, as part of the retaliatory response to the malicious Israeli crime against the Iranian embassy in Syria.

Described as "unprecedented" by a Sky News correspondent, the IRGC's Aerospace Force announced that the operation dubbed "True Promise" was launched in the context of "punishing the criminal Zionist regime."