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Secretary of State Tony Blinken alerted his G7 counterparts on Sunday that an attack by Iran and Hezbollah against Israel could begin as early as Monday, according to three sources briefed on the call.
According to a report on Axios, Blinken organized the conference call to coordinate with U.S. allies and exert last-minute diplomatic pressure on Iran and Hezbollah to limit their retaliation and prevent an all-out war. He emphasized that minimizing the impact of any strikes is crucial to avoiding widespread conflict.
Iran and Hezbollah have vowed to retaliate against Israel following the assassinations of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut. The sources said Blinken highlighted the U.S. belief that both Iran and Hezbollah will respond to these killings.
During the call, Blinken informed his counterparts that the U.S. is striving to break the cycle of escalation by attempting to limit the attacks by Iran and Hezbollah and restrain Israel's response. He assured the G7 foreign ministers that the increased U.S. forces in the region are purely for defensive purposes, according to the sources.
One source on the call mentioned that Blinken sounded frustrated while briefing the ministers on recent discussions with Israel regarding a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal.
"We express our deep concern over the heightened level of tension in the Middle East, which threatens to ignite a broader conflict in the region," the G7 ministers stated.
Gen. Michael Kurilla, commander of U.S. Central Command, is expected to arrive in Israel on Monday to finalize preparations with the Israel Defense Forces ahead of the potential attack by Iran and Hezbollah, according to Israeli officials. Other countries in the region are also bracing for dramatic escalation and scrambling to prevent it.
[Information sourced from Axios]
