US passes message to Iran not to escalate at "critical moment" for Middle East
Kyiv • UNN
The United States is engaged in intensive diplomacy to reduce tensions after the assassination of the Hamas leader. Blinken calls on all sides to refrain from escalation and work toward a ceasefire in Gaza.
The United States is urging other countries to tell Iran through diplomatic channels that escalation in the Middle East is not in their interests, a State Department official said on Monday, at what US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken called a "critical moment" for the region, UNN reports citing Reuters.
Details
Blinken said that Washington is "engaged in intense diplomacy, almost around the clock," to help reduce tensions amid fears that Iran is preparing a retaliatory strike against Israel.
"All sides must refrain from escalation," Blinken said during the signing ceremony with his Australian counterpart in Washington.
"All parties must take steps to ease tensions. Escalation is not in anyone's interest. It will only lead to more conflict, more violence, more danger," the Secretary of State said.
The White House reported that US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were briefed by their national security team on the situation in the Middle East, including the threats that Iran and its proxies pose to Israel and US military personnel. They were also briefed on Monday's attack on Iraq's Al Asad air base and discussed the U.S. response.
During this briefing, Biden and Harris reportedly received a message from their national security team that it is still unclear when Iran and Hezbollah are likely to launch an attack on Israel, "and what the specifics of such an attack would be," according to a US official.
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According to U.S. officials, at least five U.S. servicemen were wounded in the missile strike. It is unclear whether the attack was related to Iran's threats to retaliate for Khaniya's assassination, which the United States has said had nothing to do with it.
Biden and Harris were also briefed on U.S. efforts to provide military support to Israel in the event of an attack and diplomatic efforts to "de-escalate regional tensions" and reach a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in the Gaza Strip.
Earlier on Monday, Blinken spoke with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel-Aaty.
"One of the points of the engagements that we have had is to urge countries to pass messages to Iran and urge countries to make clear to Iran that it is very much not in their interests to escalate this conflict, that it is very much not in their interest to launch another attack on Israel," said State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.
Miller, speaking at a press conference, did not say whether Washington's messages were distributed to Iran or through what channel.
"I expect that some of them will pass on this message and convey this idea to the Iranian government," he added.
In his remarks, Blinken also called on the parties to "break this cycle" of violence and agree on a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict, despite the assassination of Haniyeh, who was a key figure in the negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
"It really comes down to all parties finding ways to come to an agreement rather than looking for reasons to delay or refuse," Blinken said. - "It is essential that all parties make the right choices in the hours and days ahead.
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Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in the Iranian capital of Tehran last week, an attack that sparked threats of retaliation against Israel and heightened fears that the conflict in the Gaza Strip is turning into a larger war in the Middle East.
Iran blamed Israel and said it would "punish" it; Israeli officials have not claimed responsibility for the killing. Iran supports Hamas, which is fighting Israel in Gaza, as well as the Lebanese group Hezbollah, whose senior military commander, Fouad Shukr, was killed in an Israeli strike on Beirut last week.
