After helping Israel intercept waves of Iranian missiles and suicide drones on Saturday, including at least one possible interception outside Earth's atmosphere, President Joe Biden delivered a warning to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Namely, the United States will not engage in any offensive action against Iran.
Israel remains undeterred. CNN reports its three-man war cabinet is weighing possible responses, with one of its members, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, promising that Jerusalem's response has only just begun:
Gallant said the attack had been “thwarted this attack in a way that is unparalleled” but added “we must be prepared for every scenario.” In his first comments, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “we have intercepted, we have contained. Together we shall win.”
Israel will respond to Iran's attack, but the scope of that attack has yet to be decided, an Israeli official told CNN on Sunday. The official said Israel is yet to determine whether to try and “break all the dishes” or do something more measured.
But Israel is being urged by Western allies to de-escalate an intensely fraught situation on Sunday and close, at least for now, a weeks-long chapter of uncertainty and confrontation that had spiraled out of Israel's war with Hamas that has killed more than 33,000 Palestinians in Gaza and caused a humanitarian disaster in the enclave.
The 33,000 figure reported by CNN comes from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. As of last month, Israel estimated its airstrikes, aimed at eliminating Hamas strongholds in the densely-populated Gaza Strip, had killed between 13,000 to 19,500 people, 66% civilians.
Iran's retaliatory attack had been anticipated since a suspected Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic complex in Syria earlier this month, and finally came late on Saturday when over 300 projectiles – including around 170 drones and over 120 ballistic missiles – were fired toward Israeli soil. Israeli authorities said “99%” were intercepted with help from allies including the US, the UK and France. The only injury reported was a 10-year-old girl who was seriously wounded by shrapnel from an Israeli interceptor.
The cost of Saturday's defensive operations is estimated to be over $1.3 billion, based on jet fuel and number of missile defense intercepts. One Arrow 3 hypersonic anti-ballistic missile, capable of space flight, costs upwards of $20 million.
On April 1, a precision strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus obliterated a consular building. Among the dead was Iranian General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, who oversaw Tehran's military operations and proxies in the Palestinian territories.
Israeli officials refrained from commenting on the airstrike, while authorities in Tehran vowed retribution, beginning with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who warned of deadly consequences.
Though wildly successful at saving lives, some Democrats have avidly opposed funding Israel's missile defense.
On Sunday, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attack marks a new chapter in Iran's adversarial relationship with Israel. He promised to respond to any future attacks from Israel with the same level of force.
