The United States warned Iran of "a serious risk of consequences" for its government and economy should it choose to launch a major attack against Israel, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
"The United States has sent clear messaging to Iran that the risk of a major escalation if they do a significant retaliatory attack against Israel is extremely high" and that "there is a serious risk of consequences for Iran’s economy and the stability of its newly elected government if it goes down that path," a U.S. official told the Journal.
The warning comes amid mounting concerns over the war in Gaza spilling over into a wider regional conflict in the event of an Iranian attack. The Islamic Republic last week vowed to retaliate against Israel after blaming the Jewish state for assassinating Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh on Iranian soil.
The United States has made clear that it would use force to defend Israel against Iran and its allies, having already deployed stealthy F-22 fighters, an aircraft carrier, and ships capable of shooting down ballistic missiles to the Middle East.
While Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Sunday that an attack against Israel by Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah was imminent, U.S. officials as of Thursday afternoon have yet to identify clear indications of the scale and timing of the attack.
"Last time we got more of a heads up, and this time people are making their best guesses," an official said, referring to the Islamic Republic’s April 13 missile and drone attack on Israel in retaliation for an Israeli airstrike that killed two Iranian commanders in Syria.
It also remains unclear whether Hezbollah is planning to attack Israel in coordination with Iran to try to overwhelm Israel’s missile defenses. Israel in late July eliminated Hezbollah’s top commander in response to its rocket attack days earlier that killed 12 children and teens in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Iran’s newly elected president, Masoud Pezeshkian, is reportedly open to resuming dialogue with the West, although authority over Iran’s policies remains with its supreme leader Ali Khamenei.