US officials still believe that a direct Iranian missile or drone strike is possible within the next few days, in retaliation for the Israeli bombing of an Iranian consular building in Damascus on 1 April that killed a top Islamic Revolutionary Guards general and six other officers.
Israel would rely heavily on USsupplied weaponry in any response to an Iranian strike, a point that the Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, made implicitly yesterday by standing in front of American-made F-15 fighters at the Tel Nof airbase in southern Israel.
"Whoever harms us, we will harm them. We are prepared to meet all of the security needs of the state of Israel, both defensively and offensively," he said.
The US hopes that strong messages of solidarity and support for Israel on Wednesday from Joe Biden and the secretary of state, Antony Blinken, could still serve to deter Tehran from seeking to hit Israel. An attack would mark a dangerous escalation in a long-simmering war, fought until now by proxy or by strikes in third countries such as Lebanon and Syria.
Biden said that Israel could rely on "ironclad" US backing, and Blinken called the Israeli defence minister, Yoav Gallant, to tell him that Washington "will stand with Israel against any threats by Iran and its proxies".
However, if Iran is not deterred and does strike Israel directly, the US is likely to urge caution in Israel's response, in an effort to forestall an uncontrollable escalation into a conflict that could draw in the considerable US forces in the region.
US officials say much will depend on the specifics of any Iranian attack.
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