Regarding reports that Iran may launch a retaliatory attack on Israel in the next 48 hours, the White House said on the 12th that Iran's threat to Israel is real and credible. US President Joe Biden warned Iran against an attack, that the United States would defend Israel and that Iran would not succeed.
Iran has threatened to retaliate against Israel for its attack on the consular building of the Iranian embassy in Syria earlier this month. A number of media outlets have recently quoted US officials as saying that Iran may attack military targets in Israel with more than 100 drones and dozens of missiles in a short period of time.
In this regard, the US White House National Security Council said on the 12th that it is closely monitoring Iran's potential attack on Israel and believes that Iran's threat is real and credible. U.S. President Joe Biden also responded on the same day, vowing to defend Israel.
US President Joe Biden:
I don't want to talk about classified information, but my expectation is that Iran will attack soon. We are committed to Israel's defense, we will support Israel in self-defense, and Iran will not succeed.
The Wall Street Journal quoted sources familiar with the matter on the 12th as saying that Israel is preparing to respond to a direct Iranian attack on its south or north on Friday or Saturday. But sources from the Iranian side say that while the Iranian leadership is indeed discussing plans for the attack, no final decision has yet been made. U.S. intelligence suggests that Iran or its proxies could launch an attack inside Israel within a few days.
A US news website reported that Iran had earlier conveyed a message to the United States through Arab countries that if the United States intervened in the conflict between Israel and Iran, the US troops stationed there would be hit.
The White House pointed out on the 12th that the current focus of the Biden administration is to maintain communication with Israel and ensure that Israel has the ability to defend itself.
White House National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator Kirby:
At the moment, our focus is on engaging in dialogue with Israeli officials, in addition to dialogue, to ensure that they have everything they need to defend themselves.
In addition, US Central Command Commander Kurilla visited Israel on 12 May to conduct direct dialogue and coordination with the Israel Defense Forces. It is reported that a US Department of Defense official revealed to the media that the US military is transferring more assets to the Middle East to strengthen regional deterrence and protection of US troops.
In view of the tense situation in the Middle East, the Chinese Embassy in Israel issued a security reminder on the 12th, calling on local Chinese citizens to pay close attention to the local security situation and insist on not going out unless necessary. France, the United Kingdom, Australia, India and many other countries have also issued similar notices, among which the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs has warned French citizens to "absolutely not" travel to Iran, Israel and other countries.
Source: Phoenix Satellite TV Wang Bingru and Wang Tianyi report from Washington
Editor: Qiu Guo