5 saat önce

Missile attack fallout: US threatens Iran, brags to have defended Israel

In April, the US refused to support any Israeli response to Iranian missile attack, but this time Pentagon has made clear that it will act tough in retaliation.

AP

Iran fired barrage of missiles at Israel. / Photo: AP

Iran's ballistic missile attack on Israel "appears to have been defeated and ineffective," US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has said.

Sullivan told reporters that Iran fired nearly 200 ballistic missiles at Israel, which the US worked with Israeli forces to intercept, including by using Navy destroyer warships to fire interceptors "to shoot down inbound missiles."

"We are still working with the IDF and the authorities in Israel to assess the impact of the attack. But at this time, and I stress at this time, we do not know of any deaths in Israel," Sullivan said at the White House, adding that initial reports indicate a Palestinian was killed in Jericho.

"This was first and foremost, the result of the professionalism of the IDF, but in no small part, because of the skilled work of the US military and meticulous joint planning in anticipation of the attack," he said.

He stressed that the Biden administration is "proud of" its efforts to defend Israel, reiterating a warning from a senior White House official that Iran will face "severe consequences" for the attack.

"We will work with Israel to make that the case," he said.

In April this year after a similar attack on Israel by Iran, US President Joe Biden refused to support a significant Israeli response to Iranian missile assault and told Benjamin Netanyahu at the time, “If you launch a big attack on Iran, you’re on your own.”