Leaders call for avoiding escalation after Iranian attack on Israel
French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday his government will do all it can to avoid an escalation of the situation between Israel and Iran, following an Iranian drone and missile attack on Israel.
Speaking to French media BFM-TV and RMC, Macron also urged Israel to pursue isolation of Iran rather than escalation.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz issued a similar message Monday warning Iran against further attacks on Israel, while calling on Israel to play its role in deescalating the situation.
Israeli authorities announced educational activities would resume Monday, and that limits on large gatherings would be lifted in most places.
In Iran, state media said operations at the country's airports were back to normal after being suspended due to the aerial attacks on Israel.
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Iran launched its attack in retaliation for the April 1 suspected Israeli strike on Iran's consulate in Damascus. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied it was responsible for the strike, which killed several Iranian military commanders.
Israel had warned Iran against launching any retaliatory strike from Iranian soil. Iran said its response was confined to the late Saturday attack, and warned Israel and the United States of a much larger action if Israel now attacks Iran.
Diplomats have condemned Iran's attack, while working to prevent the situation from escalating into a wider conflict.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held calls Sunday with their counterparts in Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan.
The Group of Seven leading industrial countries, or G7, "unequivocally" condemned Iran's attack on Israel after holding talks Sunday.
'We express our full solidarity and support to Israel and its people and reaffirm our commitment towards its security,' the leaders said in a statement published by the Italian G7 presidency.
Israel said Sunday that Iran launched 320 warheads against it in "an unprecedented attack," but that its air defenses along with those of the United States and other supportive countries shot down 99% of them.
"With its actions, Iran has further stepped toward the destabilization of the region and risks provoking an uncontrollable regional escalation," the G7 statement said. "This must be avoided."
The Sunday G7 session was called by Italy, which holds the rotating presidency of the group. Its members also include Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the United States.
Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson, told CNN that Iran targeted a military base that Iran said was used to launch the April 1 attack on the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital of Damascus that killed two Iranian generals. He said the overnight airstrike "didn't cause much damage."
Lerner said Iran launched 170 explosive drones against Israel, 120 ballistic missiles and 30 cruise missiles, with most of them coming directly from Iranian territory, although some were fired by Iranian militant proxies based in Iraq and Yemen.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told CNN that the "vast majority" of the warheads were launched from Iran. "There was no way to do what they did without violating international air space," sending them over other countries in the region as it targeted Israel, he said.
A few of the projectiles landed in Israel but most were shot down before they reached Israeli airspace.
Officials said one young Arab Israeli girl was critically injured when hit by shrapnel, the only reported casualty.
Kirby said that while the U.S. helped knock down incoming Iranian warheads, it has told Israel it "will not participate in an attack on Iran."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened his war Cabinet to discuss a response to the Iranian attack.
'We intercepted, we repelled, together we shall win,' Netanyahu said on social media.
Centrist war Cabinet minister Benny Gantz said Israel will respond to the attack.
'We will build a regional coalition and exact the price from Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us,' Gantz said.
Iran urged Israel not to retaliate for the strikes.
'The matter can be deemed concluded,' Iran's mission to the United Nations said in a post on social media platform X.
'However, should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran's response will be considerably more severe,' the mission said.
The aerial attack on Israel from Iranian territory marked a major escalation in the conflict between the rival regional powers and prompted action by U.S. forces in support of Israel.
In a message sent to VOA, Israeli reserves Brig. Gen. Jacob Nagel, a former national security adviser to Netanyahu, said Israeli forces were assisted by their U.S., British, Jordanian and Saudi allies in intercepting the Iranian projectiles.
A U.S. military official confirmed to VOA that U.S. forces shot down Iranian-launched drones targeting Israel.
U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with Netanyahu late Saturday. The official said Biden's national security team "will continue to work with partners in the region to prevent further escalation."
VOA's Michael Lipin, United Nations correspondent Margaret Besheer and national security correspondent Jeff Seldin contributed to this report. Some information was provided by The Associated Press and Reuters.
The Voice of America provides news and information in more than 40 languages to an estimated weekly audience of over 326 million people. Stories with the VOA News byline are the work of multiple VOA journalists and may contain information from wire service reports.