John Kirby
The White House stated Monday that Iran’s massive aerial attack on Israel was a spectacular and embarrassing failure after US forces assisted in shooting down the majority of Tehran’s missiles and drones.
John Kirby, the National Security Council spokesperson, said, “I’ve seen reporting that the Iranians meant to fail, that this spectacular and embarrassing failure was all by design”.
Kirby went on to say, “I’ve also seen Iran say that they provided early warning to help Israel prepare its defenses and limit any potential damage. All of this is categorically false”.
US officials have previously stated that Iran sent a message to Washington via Switzerland indicating that they intended to respond after a purported Israeli strike in Syria that killed a top Iranian general.
However, Kirby dismissed suggestions that Tehran knew the date and objectives of the attack in advance were ridiculous.
“The attack showed that Iran intended clearly to cause significant destruction and casualties”, Kirby continued.
US President Joe Biden has declared ironclad support for Israel’s defence but the White House has stated that it does not want the situation to escalate or a wider Middle Eastern war.
However, Kirby stated that it was up to Israel to decide whether and how to respond.
When asked if Biden had advised Israel to exercise caution after successfully repelling Iran’s attack, Kirby said “US president urged the Israel prime minister to think about what that success says, by itself and to the rest of the region”.
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