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West believes Israel may retaliate against Iran as early as April 15 — WSJ

Israeli allies believe the Iranian strike does not warrant a large-scale response due to the lack of damage that it caused

NEW YORK, April 15./TASS/. Israel may respond to Iran’s attacks as soon as Monday, April 15, The Wall Street Journal reports referring to Western officials.

However, they express hope that cooler heads prevail and the situation de-escalates. Israeli allies believe the Iranian strike does not warrant a large-scale response due to the lack of damage that it caused.

As Israeli officials noted, the country had been preparing for days, along with its Western partners, including the UK, the US and France, for a possible Iranian response to the strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus. "President Biden instructed his team to forcefully defend Israel 10 days ago," the WSJ quoted officials.

At the same time, as the paper wrote earlier, the US will not take part in any Israeli offensive operation. Washington insists that the Jewish state should not do anything that could lead to further escalation.

In turn, the ABC News TV channel, with reference to Israel Defense Forces’ spokesperson Peter Lerner, reported that the Israeli authorities would take a few days to determine what to do in response to the Iranian attack against Israel. According to him, the Israeli leadership will decide on the next steps either on April 15 or in the coming days. The military has already submitted "a wide range of options" to respond to Iran’s strike, Lerner noted.

On the evening of April 13, Iran launched drones and missiles toward Israel in response to what it called "repeated crimes" from Tel Aviv, including the attack on the consular office of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus ascribed to Israel. Tehran said that military facilities in Israel were targeted. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed it intercepted 99% of the nearly 350 projectiles launched at Israel. Israel did not report any fatalities or serious injuries, saying minor damage had been caused to Nevatim Air Base.

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