Joly urges Israel to ‘take the win,’ not escalate after Iran’s attack

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said Monday she urged her Israeli counterpart to “please take the win” and refrain from further escalation after Iran’s mass drone and missile attack on Israel over the weekend.

Nearly all of the hundreds of missiles and drones launched by Iran toward Israel on Saturday were intercepted, according to the White House and an Israeli military spokesperson, resulting in minimal damage. Israel’s military chief of staff has said the country would respond to the Iranian attack, but the form that response will take was not yet clear Monday as Israel’s war cabinet convened to discuss Iran’s actions.

Fears of further escalation in the region have prompted several airlines to halt their flights amid security concerns.

Joly told reporters in Ottawa that while Canada and its allies support Israel’s right to defend itself, they are also “clearly pushing for a de-escalation.”

“That is why I have been clear to my counterpart in Israel, please take the win and make sure we can work together to bring back peace to the region,” she said.

Leaders and officials around the world on Monday made similar appeals to Israel to not respond in kind to Iran’s attack, with many also pointing out that it was largely repelled.

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said U.S. President Joe Biden praised the preparations and actions taken by Israeli, U.S. and coalition forces in repelling the attack in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Saturday night, calling it “an extraordinary success.”

“The president urged the prime minister to think about what that success says all by itself to the rest of the region,” Kirby said.

Similarly, while speaking to reporters in Shanghai, German Chancellor