US Secretary of State Antony Blinken repeatedly refused to confirm information about Israel's attack on Iran on the morning of April 19, affirming that Washington did not participate in any offensive activities and committed to reducing tensions in the region.
“I’m not going to say anything about that except to say the United States was not involved in any offensive operations,” Blinken said at a news conference concluding a meeting of G7 foreign ministers on the southern Italian island of Capri.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken denied any US involvement in the attacks. (Photo: Reuters)
According to Reuters, the US Secretary of State repeatedly repeated the same answer, almost verbatim, when he was asked about this issue many times at the press conference.
At a separate press conference just before Blinken, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the United States “was informed at the last minute” but did not elaborate.
Explosions were heard across the Iranian city of Isfahan early on April 19. Western sources described it as an Israeli attack, but Tehran played down the incident and said it had no plans to retaliate – a response that appeared aimed at preventing the risk of war across the region.
Israel has remained silent on the incident. It previously said it was planning retaliation against Iran for the April 13 attack, the first direct Iranian attack on Israel in decades. The airstrike came amid escalating tensions across the Middle East during the six-month conflict in Gaza.
According to CNN, several US officials who said they had received warnings from Israel about the plan neither endorsed nor condemned the counterattack. Instead, they sought to make clear that the choice was Israel's alone.
“ We are not involved ,” one official said. US President Joe Biden urged restraint in a recent phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — saying a counterattack might not be necessary given the successful interception of Iranian missiles and drones. However, few White House officials believe Israel will remain silent. The US has asked Israel for advance warning of the plan.
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