Preparing to again defend Israel, US presses Iran and Israel to de-escalate

Washington CNN —

While the American military is rallying allies to yet again help defend Israel against an expected Iranian attack, top American officials are simultaneously pressing partners to push Iran to not carry out a strike – or coordinated strikes with its proxy groups – and asking Israel for restraint to prevent a widespread war in the region.

In just the past few days, President Joe Biden and his top diplomat, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, have held a flurry of calls with counterparts across the Middle East. They have each had numerous exchanges with the leaders and foreign ministers of Jordan, Qatar and Egypt with a message of de-escalation.

“We’ve been engaged in intense diplomacy with allies and partners communicating that message directly to Iran. We communicated that message directly to Israel,” Blinken said on Tuesday. “Everyone in the region should understand that further attacks only perpetuate conflict, instability, insecurity for everyone.”

The looming Iranian attack would come in response to Israel last week killing the top military commander for Iran’s most powerful proxy, Hezbollah in Lebanon. The next day, Israel is widely believed to have assassinated Hamas’ political leader in Tehran, which Israel has not admitted to carrying out.

Hassan Nasrallah gestures as he addresses his supporters at an Ashura ceremony in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon on October 23, 2015.

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Iran and its proxies have been seen beginning to make some preparations for a potential retaliation against Israel, according to two US officials familiar with intelligence. The sources would not elaborate on