US President Joe Biden on Friday advised Israel against attacking Iranian oil sites, while Republican candidate Donald Trump went so far as to suggest they strike nuclear facilities.
During a surprise intervention in front of the press at the White House, Joe Biden said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would do well to “remember” the aid provided to his country by the United States, ally number one and military support from Israel.
“If I were in their place, I would consider other options than hitting oil fields” in Iran, he declared, as he was asked to explain his comments the day before on discussions between Washington and Israel on the possibility of such strikes.
The Israelis, he continued, “have not determined what they are going to do” after Iran’s massive missile launch against Israel on Tuesday.
His predecessor Donald Trump, candidate in the November 5 presidential election, on the contrary affirmed Friday that Israel should “strike” Iranian nuclear facilities.
Speaking in North Carolina, the former president addressed a question posed to Joe Biden midweek about the possibility of Israel targeting Iranian nuclear facilities.
“They asked him this question, the answer should have been ‘hit nuclear first and worry about the rest later’,” said Donald Trump.
The Republican had until now been particularly silent on the recent conflagration in the Middle East.
He simply issued a scathing statement at the start of the week, holding Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris, his presidential rival, responsible for the explosion of tensions.
– “Mobilize the rest of the world” –
President Biden is preparing to leave power in a context of crisis, with an explosive situation in the Middle East. On Friday, the Democratic leader reiterated that he was doing everything to avoid all-out war in the region, where Israel is carrying out strikes in Lebanon against pro-Iranian Hezbollah.
“The most important thing we can do is try to mobilize the rest of the world and our allies to participate” and help ease tensions, he said, citing France as an example. .
“When you have (pro-Iranian) groups as irrational as Hezbollah and the (Yemeni rebels) Houthis, things are difficult,” declared the American president.
Joe Biden did not hide his irritation with Benjamin Netanyahu, with whom relations leave something to be desired as the United States tries to frame Israel’s devastating response to the deadly Hamas attack of October 7 on Israeli soil.
The Israeli prime minister has consistently ignored American calls for restraint in Lebanon and Gaza, where more than 41,000 Palestinians have died in Israeli reprisals.
– “Contact constant” –
The American president kicked in when asked if he felt that the Israeli Prime Minister was reluctant to agree to a peace agreement in an attempt to influence the outcome of the American presidential election.
“No administration has helped Israel as much as I have. None, none, none. And I think Bibi (Mr. Netanyahu’s nickname) should remember that,” he said from the White House. “As for whether he’s trying to influence the election, I don’t know, but I’m not counting on it.”
Although he has not spoken to him personally since the Iranian attack, the two countries are in “constant contact”, he also said. “They are not going to make a decision immediately so we will wait and see when they want to talk.”
Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Iran would face severe retaliation for the firing of around 200 Iranian missiles against Israel on Tuesday.
Tehran claims that this attack was motivated by Israel’s assassination of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah.
Claiming to act to support Gaza, the pro-Iranian group began firing rockets against Israel in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israeli soil, which left more than 1,200 dead.
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