U.S. will not help Israel with counter-offensive against Iran, Biden says

President Joe Biden warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the U.S. will not take part in a counter-offensive against Iran, an option that Netanyahu’s war cabinet favors after a mass drone and missile attack on Israeli territory, according to officials.

The threat of open warfare erupting between the arch Middle East foes and dragging in the United States has put the region on edge, triggering calls for restraint from global powers and Arab nations to avoid further escalation.

The U.S. will continue to help Israel defend itself but does not want war, John Kirby, the White House’s top national security spokesperson, told ABC’s “This Week” program on Sunday.

Jordan’s King Abdullah told Biden in a phone call on Sunday that any further escalation from Israel would widen the conflict in the region, Jordanian state media reported.

Israeli officials said Netanyahu’s five-member war cabinet favored retaliation in a meeting on Sunday, though the panel is divided over the timing and scale of any such response.

Iran launched the attack over a suspected Israeli strike on its embassy compound in Syria on April 1 that killed top Revolutionary Guards commanders and followed months of clashes between Israel and Iran’s regional allies, triggered by the war in Gaza.

However, the attack by more than 300 missiles and drones, mostly launched from inside Iran, caused only modest damage in Israel as most were shot down by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system and with help from the U.S., Britain, France and Jordan.

An Air Force base in southern Israel was hit but continued to operate as normal and a 7-year-old child was seriously hurt by shrapnel. There were no other reports of serious damage.

Two senior Israeli ministers signaled on Sunday that