CNN —For President Joe Biden, an attack on Israel launched from Iranian soil amounts to a scenario he’d greatly sought to avoid since the start of the current Middle East conflict.
In the immediate aftermath of Iran’s attacks, American officials acknowledged they were entering uncharted territory, with the extent of Iran’s attacks initially unclear.
One significant question mark is how proxies might potentially join Iranian efforts to target Israel and add a new layer of unpredictability.
Administration officials saw Iran’s attacks on Israel Saturday as disproportionate to Israel’s strikes in Damascus that prompted the retaliation, a US official told CNN.
As Iran’s plans to attack Israel grew clearer, American officials increasingly assessed that Tehran was not seeking direct conflict with the United States.
Persons:
Joe Biden, Biden —, Biden, areexpected, Benjamin Netanyahu, Lloyd Austin, Yoav Gallant, Netanyahu, Erik Kurilla, Israel, CNN’s Oren Liebermann
Organizations:
CNN, Israel, United, White, Israeli, Iran, US Central Command, US
Locations:
Israel, United States, Gaza, Delaware, Damascus, Syria, Iran, Tehran, Jordan