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Two weeks ago, tensions between Israel and Iran reached a new level when Israel launched an attack on Iran’s consulate in Damascus. The move had its intended effect: Israel killed multiple IRGC Quds Force commanders. It followed, among other things, clashes between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants based in Lebanon, in addition to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.
The question wasn’t whether Iran would retaliate for the attack in Syria. Rather, the world waited to see when and how Tehran would respond. The answer came into focus over the weekend: On Saturday, Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel.
Iranian officials must’ve realized that the offensive wouldn’t have much of an effect on the ground — and it didn’t. NBC News reported that defense systems thwarted the attack, and while there was some damage to an air base and a nearby road, operations at the base were not affected.
According to the latest accounts, no one was killed by the Iranian drones and missiles. Dan Drezner, a professor of international politics at Tufts University, called it "a flashy-yet-militarily-inconsequential" move.
This, in turn, has led to follow-up questions of how Israel will respond to Iran’s response, though it appears the White House has a preferred course of action. A Politico report noted, “[A] person familiar with the U.S.-Israeli conversation said Biden essentially told Netanyahu to ‘take the win’ given that Israel escaped the attack largely unscathed.”
A follow-up Politico report added:
The Biden administration’s main message for Israel following Iran’s aerial assault comes down to this: Stop and think. U.S. officials expect Israel to respond in some fashion to Saturday’s strikes, but in both public and private ways they are taking steps they hope will convince Israel to choose a limited response as opposed to an all-out armed counter-attack.
A New York Times report noted that it’s not just the White House: “[T]he Group of 7 nations, the European Union and the U.N. secretary general were among those counseling restraint.”
Some congressional Republicans, however, appear to have a different approach in mind. Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, for example, said via social media that the United States “must move quickly and launch aggressive retaliatory strikes on Iran.”
That seems extraordinarily unlikely, especially as Biden endorses a diplomatic course. That said, the matter clearly has Congress’ attention.
“In light of Iran’s unjustified attack on Israel, the House will move from its previously announced legislative schedule next week to instead consider legislation that supports our ally Israel and holds Iran and its terrorist proxies accountable,” said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise in a statement.
The votes on the GOP’s absurd bills related to home appliances will apparently have to wait.