President Joe Biden warned Iran about attacking Israel

President Joe Biden warned Iran about attacking Israel

Apr 13 - US President Joe Biden has said Iran could attack Israel soon amid growing fears of an attack to avenge the killing of a top commander in an airstrike.

Although Israel has not acknowledged the attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria, it is widely believed that they are behind the attack.

US officials told CBS News that a major strike against Israel could be imminent.

Israel says the country is capable of ensuring its own security.

'Don't attack,' says Biden.“We are dedicated to protecting Israel. We will support Israel. Help protect Israel and Iran will not succeed."

Iran supports Hamas, which is fighting Israel in Gaza. The country also supports proxy groups across the region. These include Lebanon's Hezbollah, which frequently attacks Israel.

Hezbollah said on Friday it had fired dozens of rockets from Lebanon at Israel.

A spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, or IDF, said about 40 missiles and two explosive drones were fired. However, there were no reports of damage and no indication of any countermeasures.

A U.S. official told CBS television that separate steps have been taken to defend against any attack from Iran.

BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says Iran is deliberately keeping the Middle East and Washington guessing.

After the deadly attack on the consulate in Damascus on April 1, Iran's security institutions are reacting. Israel believes that Iran-backed groups operating behind the scenes in Lebanon and Syria were operating from the consulate building.

It is an action or a process of holding a position. Strike hard and Israel will respond with devastating force. Again, going lightly will create the risk of showing Iran as weak and ineffectual for Iran.

Strategically, when everyone in the region is on alert and the US is telling what could happen, it makes no sense for Iran to respond now. Pragmatists in Tehran and Qom (the holy cities of Shia Muslims in Iran) will urge patience. But hawks like supreme religious leader Ayatollah Khamenei will want a strong response.

But Iran does not want an all-out war. Neither do its neighbors in the Gulf. Governments there have already called on Iran to exercise patience. Now the question is whose wish will be fulfilled - the hawk or the dove. The US, UK, India and Australia have issued travel warnings to Israel due to rising tensions. Germany has asked its citizens to leave Iran.

The US State Department has asked its diplomats and their families to refrain from traveling to Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Beersheba. Amid these warnings, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a meeting with members of his wartime cabinet.Some Israelis say they are not worried about a possible Iranian attack.

"We know we are surrounded by enemies - north, south, east and west," Daniel Cosman told AFP at a market in Jerusalem. “We are not afraid, I can tell you. Look people are coming out”.

The Israeli government has not issued any new instructions to the public beyond the instructions to stock three days' worth of water and food and essential medicines.

But Israeli radio reported that local authorities have been told to prepare for possible attacks, including preparing shelters.

Last week, the leave of the country's military personnel was canceled and the air defense system was strengthened.

Thirteen people were killed in an attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus. Among them are some senior military officers including Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi. He is a senior commander of Iran's Quds Force active in Syria and Lebanon.

Israel has not commented on the matter. However, they are widely believed to be behind the attack. Officials in several countries are trying to dissuade Iran from attacking. They fear that this attack may trigger a regional war.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken spoke with the foreign ministers of China, Saudi Arabia and Turkey to persuade them to use their influence on Iran. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said on Friday after talks with the commander of US Central Command that the threat had strengthened the ties between the two countries. "We know how to respond".

The war in Gaza erupted after Hamas attacked Israeli territory. Twelve people were killed in the Hamas attack and twenty-two were taken hostage by Hamas.

Israel says there are still 130 hostages and 34 are dead.

On the other hand, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, 33,600 people have been killed in Israel's operation in Gaza, most of them civilians. In this conflict, Israel has to exchange fire almost daily against Hezbollah on its northern border. The Iran-backed group attempts to attack Israeli territory from Iraq and Yemen and US bases in Iraq and Syria.

Yemen's Houthi rebels have also carried out attacks on ships in the Red Sea. A shipwreck was also seen. As a result, the United States and the United Kingdom launched airstrikes targeting Houthi positions in Yemen.-BBC