An Israeli government source said the war cabinet session scheduled for Tuesday had been put off until Wednesday, without elaborating. Hoping to steer Israel away from massive retaliation, the US and Europe flagged a toughening of economic and political sanctions against Iran.
The US did not prevent the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and it is doubtful whether its conduct in the Middle East so far deters China from changing the strategic reality in the Indo-Pacific region. However, projecting American power against Iranian aggression would significantly bolster American deterrence in the inter-bloc struggle and signal to its allies, including Jordan and Saudi Arabia, that they have someone they can count on.
"It is impossible not to respond to such an attack. We will act at the time and place of our choosing, and any discussion about it is unnecessary," Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari says at the paper's conference.
Even in the Regional Cooperation Department of the IDF's Strategic Division, they were burning the midnight oil in the late hours on Saturday and early Sunday. The language used in those hours was Arabic, and the content of the conversations was intelligence updates based on developments before, during, and after the attack. More than one country was on the line with the Israeli officers – and not all have formal ties with Israel.
"I'm from Dorot," one woman in the audience told the minister, recalling her Gaza-area community horrific experience during and after the October massacre and kidnapping incidents. "Members of my community are being held captive. Minister, look at me," she continued, with cheers from supporters.
