US President Joe Biden says he will not support an Israeli attack on sites related to Tehran’s nuclear program.
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“The answer is no,” Biden said Wednesday, when asked if he would support such retaliation after Iran fired about 180 missiles at Israel on Tuesday.
Biden’s comments came after he and fellow Group of Seven leaders spoke by phone on Wednesday to discuss new sanctions against Iran. On this call, US secretary of state Antony Blinken spoke with foreign ministers from France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom about a coordinated response to Iran’s attack on Israel.
The White House said in a statement that the G7 leaders “unequivocally condemned Iran’s attack against Israel” and Biden reiterated the United States’ “full solidarity and support to Israel and its people.”
US State department spokesperson Matthew Miller said the US is speaking with Israel on how to respond in a press briefing on Wednesday, but would give no further details.
All the while, the administration has signalled that it’s urging that Israel display restraint in how it responds to Tuesday’s missile attack, which Biden said was “ineffective and defeated.”
Miller also addressed Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz’s announcement that Israel has barred the secretary general of the United Nations, António Guterres, from entering the country. “We don`t find that step to be productive in any way,” he said.
Guterres was declared ‘persona non grata’, a move that reflected broader Israeli anger at the United Nations, claiming UN officials, including Mr. Guterres, have failed to criticise attacks against Israel in strong enough terms.
Israel’s ambassador to the UN said that Antonio Guterres’ latest statement calling for de-escalation in the Middle East conflict is ‘detached from reality’.
Guterres condemned Iran’s most recent attack on Israel at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Wednesday, while at the same time calling for “an immediate ceasefire in Gaza with the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, the effective delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, and the irreversible progress to a two-state solution.”
