Israel assures US that it will not hit Irans nuclear or oil sites in retaliatory attack: reports
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has assured the US that Israel will not target Iran’s nuclear or oil facilities as part of its looming retaliatory strike on Tehran, according to multiple reports.Netanyahu told President Biden during their classified call last week that the Israeli Defense Forces’ strike would be limited to military targets as a response to Iran’s ballistic missile barrage earlier this month, the Washington Post first reported.The decision to limit Israel’s counterattack came after days of the Harris-Biden administration publicly voicing their opposition to a strike on Tehran’s oil and nuclear sites, fearing that it would trigger all-out war in the region.
Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the prime minister and Biden discussed Israel’s response to the Iranian strike, and while the Jewish state will continue to closely coordinate with the US, the premier said Israel’s final decision will be theirs to make.“We listen to the opinions of the United States, but we will make our final decisions based on our national interests,” Netanyahu’s office wrote on X.The White House did not immediately comment on the report.
Along with the US, a conference of Gulf nations have all been advocating for Israel to avoid hitting Iran’s oil facilities, as such a strike would likely affect them and cause a spike in global crude prices.Analysts have speculated that if crude oil prices soar, it would lead to higher gas prices, which have been blamed on Democrats and could hurt Vice President Kamala Harris just weeks before the election.Israel’s strike on Iran would also be done in a way to avoid the “political interference in the US elections,” a source familiar with the matter told the WaPo.
Israel has vowed a harsh response against Tehran after the Islamic Republic fired more than 100 ballistic missiles at the Jewish state on Oct.1.
Despite the wide-scale attack, the only casualty was a Palestinian man in the West Bank who died...