Israel bombed war-battered Gaza, Hamas said on Monday, as world leaders awaited Israel’s reaction but urged de-escalation after Iran’s unprecedented attack that heightened fears of wider conflict.
AFP reports that United States President Joe Biden said on Monday he wanted to prevent the conflict in the Middle East from spreading more widely.
World powers have called for restraint after Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel late Saturday, though the Israeli military has said nearly all were intercepted.
Iran’s first direct assault on Israel, in retaliation for a deadly April 1 strike on its Damascus embassy consular annex, follows months of violence across the region involving Iranian proxies and allies who say they act in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
“Iran launched an unprecedented aerial attack against Israel, and we launched an unprecedented military effort to defend it. Together with our partners, we defended that attack,” Biden said as he met Iraq’s visiting Prime Minister.
“The United States is committed to Israel’s security. We’re committed to a ceasefire that will bring the hostages home and prevent the conflict from spreading beyond what it already has,” Biden added in the Oval Office.
No decision has been made on how, when, or if Israel could respond to the Iran attack, local media said, reporting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would meet with his war cabinet later Monday.
Tensions in Iran “weaken the regime and rather serve Israel,” the newspaper Israel Hayom said, adding that this suggested Israeli leaders would not rush to retaliate.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has warned that a “reckless” Israeli move would spark a “much stronger response”.
Tehran has insisted the attack on Israel was an act of “self-defence” after the Damascus strike that killed seven Revolutionary Guards including two generals.
Attention has also turned to Israel’s top ally, the United States, which played a key role in shooting down the Iranian drones.
AFP reports that while Biden has been increasingly critical of the civilian death toll in Gaza, after the Iran attack, he reaffirmed Washington’s “ironclad” support for Israel.
But Biden has been pushing for caution from Israel, telling Netanyahu that the White House would not offer military support for any retaliation against Iran, according to a senior US official.
The Israeli military said it would not be distracted from its war against Hamas in Gaza, triggered by the Palestinian armed group’s October 7 attack on Israel.
“Even while under attack from Iran, we have not lost sight of our critical mission in Gaza to rescue our hostages from the hands of Iran’s proxy Hamas,” military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said late Sunday.
Israel estimates that 129 hostages, including 34 presumed dead, remain in the hands of Palestinian militants since the attack six months ago.
The Hamas government media office said Israeli aircraft and tanks launched “dozens” of strikes overnight on central Gaza, reporting several casualties.
Witnesses told AFP that strikes hit the Nuseirat refugee camp, with clashes also reported in other areas of central and northern Gaza.
Hamas’ attack that triggered the war resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 33,797 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
