FT: US, Europe scramble to prevent war in Middle East after Hamas leader killed
Kyiv • UNN
European and American diplomats are holding urgent talks in the Middle East after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Ghani. The goal is to prevent further escalation and a new full-scale war in the region.
European and American diplomats are holding urgent talks in the Middle East to prevent further escalation, which will result in a new full-scale war. This was reported by the Financial Times and UNN with reference to their own sources.
Details
In particular, in Tehran, talks on the death of Hamas leader Ismail Ghani were held by EU Deputy Foreign Policy Chief Enrique Mora. In turn, his colleague , the White House's chief Middle East envoy , Brett McGurk, held talks in Saudi Arabia.
Diplomats are seeking to persuade Tehran not to respond to Ghani's assassination, or to limit itself to “symbolic actions,” after Israeli diplomats said their military is not planning further operations.
In addition, on July 31, the administration of US President Joe Biden held urgent consultations with Israel and other allies to try to pull all parties away from the brink of conflict.
The Financial Times says that the attack in Tehran has only heightened concerns among U.S. officials that any response could lead to a major regional conflict.
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At the same time, John Kirby, Strategic Communications Coordinator for the U.S. National Security Council, said that Washington is confident that escalation can be avoided.
We do not believe that escalation is inevitable, and there is no indication that escalation is imminent
Nevertheless, current and former U.S. officials told the FT that further developments in the conflict may depend more on Tehran's calculations than Israel's.
Washington's ability to shape events is likely to be quite limited. In the short term, the reaction of Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas to the deaths of Shukr and Haniyeh will increase the likelihood of a regional war or a return to tit-for-tat attacks
Recall
On Wednesday, July 31, one of the leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in an air strike in Iran. In response to Haniyeh's assassination, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered a direct strike against Israel.
