An anti-missile system operates after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel April 14, 2024.
Amir Cohen | Reuters
Israel has vowed to “exact a price” from Iran in retaliation for the large-scale aerial assault on the Jewish state this weekend — while some analysts expect Israel to respond, the timing and extent of that retaliation remains in question.
Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles against military targets inside Israel on Saturday, in what President Joe Biden described as “unprecedented.”
“Right now, they certainly are seriously considering direct strikes on Iran, because that is a clearest path back to deterrence,” according to Ryan Bohl, senior Middle East and North Africa analyst at risk intelligence platform Rane Network.
But Israel will need to strike a delicate balance, he noted, highlighting that “they don’t want an overt conflict with Iran.”
The less risky tactic is a “covert escalation,” where the Israelis will be “looking for ways where they can get their shadow war back into the shadows with greater intensity,” Bohl told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Monday.
While Biden has pledged an “ironclad” commitment to Israel’s security against Iranian threats, he has also made clear to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the U.S. will not participate in any offensive operations against Iran, a senior administration official told NBC News.
Ahead of a War Cabinet meeting on Sunday, Israel’s centrist minister, Benny Gantz, vowed to “build a regional coalition and exact the price from Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us.”
Iran has said the attack on Israel was in response to an Israeli strike on its embassy compound in Damascus, Syria, earlier this month. The Islamic regime has accused Israel of the April 1 attack which killed seven Iranian military personnel, including senior commanders.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (2nd R) attends the Israel’s war cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (not seen), held to discuss the drone attack launched by Iran in Tel Aviv, Israel on April 14, 2024.
Israeli Ministry of Defense | Anadolu | Getty Images
Iran’s envoy to the United Nations cited self-defense for the country’s actions.
“This action was in the exercise of Iran’s inherent right to self-defense as outlined in Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, and in response to the Israeli recurring military aggressions, particularly its armed attack on 1st…
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