Updated 02.39 | Published 02.20
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full screen Killed Hamas leader Ismail Haniya adorns a large banner in Iran’s capital Tehran with the message: Expect a severe punishment. Archive image. Photo: Vahid Salemi/AP/TT
Both Iran and Israel should avoid escalating the situation in the Middle East and recognize the risk of misjudgments, pleads US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
– No one should escalate this conflict. We have engaged in intensive diplomacy with allies and partners and also communicated that message directly to Iran. We communicated that message directly to Israel, Blinken said on Tuesday evening.
At the same time, US Defense Minister Lloyd Austin emphasized that yesterday’s rocket attack against US forces in Iraq will not be left unanswered.
– Make no mistake, the United States will not tolerate attacks on our personnel in the region, Austin said, stressing that the United States is ready to act at short notice.
He said an “Iran-backed Shia militia group” carried out the attack but the US is still trying to determine which one.
Iran has threatened retaliation after Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran last week, an act the regime blames on Israel.