Iranian officials have reportedly said that only a cease-fire deal between Hamas and Israel could prevent the country from launching a retaliatory strike on Israel.
Iran vowed to make a severe response to Israel, whom it blames for the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was in Tehran for the inauguration of new President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Reuters reported that three senior Iranian officials said the country would consider abandoning its retaliatory strike if Hamas and Israel reach a cease-fire agreement during the current hostage negotiation talks.
One of the officials told Reuters that if the talks fail, or if Iran perceives that Israel is attempting to draw out the negotiations, Iran and its allies would launch a direct attack on Israel. It is not clear how long Iran would wait for the negotiations.
U.S. President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he also believed a cease-fire deal could stave off an Iranian attack on Israel.
Speaking at an appearance in New Orleans, Biden was asked if a cease-fire in Gaza could prevent an Iranian attack against Israel.
"That's my expectation," Biden responded. He also told the reporters that reaching a cease-fire deal is "getting harder," but said he is "not giving up."
"We'll see what Iran does and we'll see what happens if there is any attack. But I'm not giving up," the president said.
While the Hamas terror group said it would not attend the hostage negotiations on Thursday, the State Department said on Tuesday that it is working to get a Hamas representative.
The group blames Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for making additional demands and said it would only accept the previously agreed upon proposal.
White House spokesman John Kirby on Monday said that the U.S. expected an Iranian attack could happen this week.
"Something could happen as soon as this week by Iran and its proxies," Kirby said, adding that this "is a U.S. assessment as well as an Israel assessment."
Kirby warned that Iran's action could affect the hostage negotiations.
"If something does happen this week, the timing of it could certainly well have an impact on these talks we want to do on Thursday," he warned.
At the same time, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said last week that forcing Israel to wait for a retaliation is "part of the battle."
Hezbollah has previously stated that it would only stop its attacks against Israel if a cease-fire would be reached in Gaza.
The U.S. has deployed additional warships to the area, including an extra carrier strike group, and a guided missile submarine, along with F-22 fighter jets in an attempt to dissuade Iran from a large-scale attack on Israel.
On Tuesday, the U.S. also announced the approval of $20 billion in weapons sales to Israel to enable it to meet its defensive needs in light of increasing tensions.
Republished with permission from All Israel News