Iran and its Lebanese terror proxy Hezbollah could attack Israel as early as Monday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his counterparts from the G7 countries on Sunday.
Three sources briefed on the conference call confirmed the top American diplomat’s remarks to Axios reporter Barak Ravid.
Blinken convened the meeting with the G7 allies—Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom—to coordinate ahead of the expected offensive by Iran and its terror proxies against the Jewish state.
He stressed that reducing the impact of the expected Iranian drone and missile strikes offered the best hope of preventing an all-out war, according to the report.
While Washington believes Iran and Hezbollah will retaliate against Israel for the targeted killings last week of Hezbollah mastermind Fuad Shukr in Beirut and Hamas senior leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, it is unclear regarding what form that retaliation will take, said Blinken.
Nor, he added, does Washington know the exact timing of the expected attack. However, he emphasized that it could start as soon as the next 24 to 48 hours, meaning as soon as Monday.
Washington was attempting to “break the escalatory cycle” by limiting the attacks by Iran and its proxies and also by restraining Israel’s response to them, said Blinken according to Axios.
“Blinken asked the other foreign ministers to apply diplomatic pressure on Iran, Hezbollah and Israel to maintain maximum restraint,” the report continued.
He also stressed to the G7 allies that the bolstering of U.S. forces in the Middle East region was for defensive purposes only.
“We express our deep concern over the heightened level of tension in the Middle East which threatens to ignite a broader conflict in the region,” the G7 ministers said in a statement.
“We urge all involved parties to refrain from perpetuating the current destructive cycle of retaliatory violence, to lower tensions and engage constructively towards de-escalation. No country or nation stands to gain from further escalation in the Middle East,” it continues.
Gen. Erik Kurilla, commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), arrived in the Middle East on Saturday for a previously scheduled regional tour, the focus of which has now shifted to mobilizing a multilateral defensive force to shield Israel.
Kurilla touched down in Tel Aviv on Monday, where he met with top Israel Defense Forces officials to finalize preparations ahead of the possible Iranian and Hezbollah attacks.
Kurilla and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi held a joint situational assessment on security and strategic issues, as well as joint preparations in the region, as part of the response to threats in the Middle East,” the Israeli military said in a statement on Monday.
“The IDF will continue to deepen its relationship with the U.S Armed Forces stemming from a commitment to strengthening regional stability and coordination between the two militaries,” the army added.
Biden convenes national security team
U.S. President Joe Biden convened his national security team in the Situation Room on Monday afternoon to discuss the developments in the Middle East, according to the White House.
The president also spoke with Jordan’s King Abdullah, the White House said. Amman played a pivotal role during Iran’s April 13 onslaught on Israel.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi visited Tehran on Sunday to discuss the security situation. According to the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, Safadi met with acting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri and passed along a message from King Abdullah II to the Iranian president.
“I didn’t come here to convey a message from Israel or to receive a message for Israel. I came here to express concern about regional escalation,” Axios quoted Safadi as saying after his meeting in Tehran.
Underscoring the regional tensions, the visit marks the first diplomatic trip to the Islamic Republic by a high-level Jordanian official since Safadi’s predecessor, Nasser Judeh, led a government delegation to Tehran in 2015.
Iranian officials have told Arab diplomats that Tehran is determined to strike Israel even if doing so sparks a regional war, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened the chiefs of Israel’s security agencies on Sunday evening for a situation assessment at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Channel 12 News reported, noting that the government is still creating a “definitive picture” of the assault it could be facing.
The report said that Israel’s defense establishment was considering the possibility of “preventive actions or attacks … in Lebanon or perhaps in other places where necessary.”
A source in Jerusalem told NBC News earlier on Sunday that the government is bracing for a combined attack by Iran and Hezbollah lasting “several days,” with missile attacks from the north and east.