Israel will make its own decisions about how to respond to Iran’s unprecedented missile and drone attack, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday, brushing aside a chorus of pleas from allies calling for restraint.
Netanyahu met the German and British foreign ministers, who traveled to Israel to try to convince his government to avoid escalating the conflict with Iran into a full-blown war — hours after Tehran warned that even the “tiniest invasion” of its territory would trigger a “massive and harsh response.”
Speaking to reporters at a meeting of his cabinet, Netanyahu thanked Israel’s allies for their support “in both words and deeds” — but stressed that his country would be the one calling the shots when deciding on how to respond to Iran’s provocation.
“They have all sorts of suggestions and advice, I appreciate it, but I want to be clear: We will make our decisions ourselves,” the tough-talking PM said. “The state of Israel will do whatever is necessary to defend itself.”
Earlier, UK Foreign Minister David Cameron said it was apparent that Jerusalem planned to respond, but said he hoped it would do so “in a way that is smart as well as tough and also does as little as possible to escalate this conflict.”
Cameron’s German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, said her government stands “in full solidarity with Israel” but pleaded for moderation, warning that an escalation in the already volatile region “would serve no one.”
“Everyone must now act prudently and responsibly,” she said. “I’m not talking about giving in. I’m talking about prudent restraint, which is nothing less than strength. Because Israel has already shown strength with its defensive victory at the weekend.”
The Iranian attack saw more than 300 missiles and drones launched at Israel on Saturday.
But nearly all of them were shot down by Israel and its allies, including the US, the UK and Jordan. A 7-year-old Bedouin girl was injured in the barrage, but no deaths were reported.
Israel has vowed to respond to Iran’s act of aggression, even as Tehran previously said it considered the matter settled.
Iran has painted Saturday’s attack as a retaliation for Israel’s alleged strike on its embassy complex in Syria on April 1.
Seeking to stave off a regional war, President Biden on Tuesday rolled out new sanctions on Iran, and European Union leaders were expected to discuss their own sanctions at an upcoming summit in Brussels.
Biden warned Netanyahu earlier this week that the US would not take part in any counteroffensive attack against Iran, officials said.
With Post wires
