Israeli military pledges response to Iran's attack amid calls for calm

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This handout picture released by the Israeli Army shows the head of the military, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi (L), attending a situational assessment with members of the General Staff Forum at the Kirya military base, which houses the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, Israel, on April 14, 2024. /CFP

Israel's military chief said on Monday his country would respond to Iran's weekend missile and drone attack amid calls for restraint by allies anxious to avoid an escalation of conflict in the Middle East.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned his war cabinet for the second time in less than 24 hours to weigh how to react to Iran's first-ever direct attack on Israel, a government source said.

Israel's military Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said the country would respond, but provided no details.

"This launch of so many missiles, cruise missiles, and drones into Israeli territory will be met with a response," he said at the Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel, which sustained some damage in Saturday night's attack.

Iran's attack – launched in retaliation for a suspected Israeli airstrike on its embassy compound in Damascus on April 1 – has increased fears of open warfare between Israel and Iran and heightened concerns that violence rooted in the Gaza war is spreading further in the region.

Wary of the dangers, U.S. President Joe Biden told Netanyahu the United States will not take part in any Israeli counter-offensive against Iran, officials said on Sunday.

"We're on the edge of the cliff and we have to move away from it," Josep Borrell, the European Union's foreign affairs chief, told Spanish radio station Onda Cero. "We have to step on the brakes and reverse gear."

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and British Foreign Secretary David Cameron made similar appeals. China, Russia, the U.S. and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have also issued calls for restraint.

Source(s): Reuters