Next few days "crucial" to prevent Middle-East escalation, says Stamford politics expert
Israel's war cabinet is meeting again today to discuss how to respond to drone attacks from Iran
Last updated 16th Apr 2024
The next few days could be "crucial" in a bid to prevent tensions in the Middle East from rising further, according to the Head of Politics at Harrow International School Hong Kong.
David Tuck, from Stamford, said: 'President Biden has said the US support for Israel is "ironclad", however he's been very clear the USA will not participate in any offensive retaliation against Iran.'
'The USA, China, the EU, of course the UK, are doing all they can to try and mediate a peace - but the next few days could be crucial.'
It's after an unprecedented attack by Iran on Israel on Saturday, which it said was retaliation against a strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound in Syria earlier this month.
The vast majority of around 350 drones and missiles launched by Iran were shot down.
Israel's war cabinet's meeting again today to discuss how to respond to drone attacks from Iran.
It's understood they've delayed their planned ground offensive in Rafah in southern Gaza while they weigh up what to do next.
Western allies - including the UK - have urged restraint to avoid escalation in the Middle East.
Journalist and war photographer Jeremy Hunt, from Rutland, said: 'If this goes tit-for-tat, the whole thing is going to escalate and again we could be into, possibly, a much larger confrontation.'
'What Iran has done is send a warning: If Israel or it's allies were to attack any of their missions around the Middle East again, they will retaliate.'
He added: 'There needs to be a very considered view about the future of what is going to happen.'
'... I think the world has to be very cautious of moving forward again, to see what happens.'
Israel must be "smart as well as tough"
Lord David Cameron has urged Israel to be "smart as well as tough" by not escalating the conflict with Iran.
Israel should recognise Tehran's attack at the weekend as an "almost total failure" and "think with head as well as heart" in its response, the Foreign Secretary said.
He confirmed that British RAF jets shot down "a small number" of drones fired by Iran in what was its first direct military assault on Israeli soil.
The attack by Iran has raised fears over the Israel-Hamas war spiralling into a wider regional conflagration.
Speaking ahead of a Commons statement by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the matter, Lord Cameron on Monday echoed US President Joe Biden's comment that Israel should view the successful defence against around 350 drones and missiles launched by Iran as a victory.
Downing Street said there are "no current plans to publish legal advice" on the UK action, since British forces are operating within existing permissions and defined geographic area of the Operation Shader mission.
Giving pilots permission to intercept any airborne attacks from Iran is a "common-sense measure" to ensure that drones or missiles flying at or past British aircraft could be taken out, the Prime Minister's spokesman said, while declining to say how many were shot down by the RAF.
The official also rejected Iran's assertion that it gave advance warning of its strike, saying: "We were not briefed directly by Iran on their attacks."
Lord Cameron called for a pivot in focus to the release of hostages by Hamas.
"Our hope is that there won't be a retaliatory response, and instead the world's focus should shift to Hamas.
"They still hold those hostages. They've been offered a deal that prisoners can be released from Israeli jails in return for some of those hostages and there'll be a pause in the fighting. That's what needs to happen next and that's what I hope we can focus on."
He placed the blame for the ongoing Gaza war with Hamas, saying the militant group has rejected Israel's offer.
"Anyone in any doubt who is responsible for keeping this conflict going, it's not Israel, it is Hamas, and the focus should be on them."
An Israeli offensive in Gaza, sparked by Hamas's October 7 attack that claimed the lives of 1,200 people, has caused widespread devastation and killed more than 33,000 Palestinians.
Leaders of the G7 on Sunday warned that an "uncontrollable regional escalation" in the Middle East must be prevented and said they "stand ready to take further measures now and in response to further destabilising initiatives".
All eyes will be on the response from Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, with countries in the region and elsewhere urging restraint to avoid intensifying the conflict.
A spokeswoman for the Israeli embassy in London said Israel is not "in the business of revenge" but wants to ensure Iran is "deterred" from launching further attacks.
Orly Goldschmidt told Sky News: "We are listening very carefully to our allies, we're taking what they're saying into consideration but, at the end of the day, we will have to defend ourselves against this Iranian threat."
Shadow defence secretary John Healey urged Mr Sunak to set out the Government's actions to "pursue the path of peace" in the Middle East.
He told BBC Breakfast: "We need to hear about the reasons for the military action, the legal basis for it, but most importantly what the UK Government is doing diplomatically to try and reduce tensions, to restore some stability and to pursue the path of peace and a ceasefire in Gaza."