Iran awaits Israeli retaliation as Khamenei blames US, Europe for regional instability

Iran lashed out at the United States and Europe Wednesday as Israel looked to retaliate against the Islamic Republic for its missile attack and the region braced for the possibility of a third confrontation between the two arch-foes.

“In our region, the root cause of problems, which leads to conflicts, wars, concerns and hostilities and such like, results from the presence of the same people who claim to advocate peace and tranquillity in the region; that is America and some European countries,” Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said Wednesday in Tehran, according to the Iranian Press TV.

He accused the United States and the West of helping Israel with financial, logistical, and intelligence support as it battled Iranian proxy groups over the last year, such as Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Houthis in Yemen.

Khamenei spoke just one day after Iran attacked Israel with over 180 ballistic missiles, many of which were shot out of the skies by the combined forces of the US, Israeli, British, French, and Jordanian armies. It was the same coalition that protected Israel during the first direct Iranian attack in April.

Israelis entered the New Year Wednesday as the Jewish state and Iran seemed braced for another showdown and as the IDF continued to pound Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.

KAN news reported that Israel’s Security Cabinet had decided on a difficult or harsh response, but had not finalized its plans, in which there is speculation that Israel could target Iranian nuclear facilities or its oil fields.

Iran has vowed to respond to any retaliation by Israel or the US, with American officials themselves warning Tehran that there would be consequences in what UN National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has called a “serious escalation.”

Prior to the start of the Jewish New Year Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "We're in the heat of a grueling war against Iran's axis of evil, aimed at destroying us. That will not happen, because we shall stand together, and with God's help, we shall emerge victorious together.

Will Israel respond to the attack?

Israeli officials have told US counterparts they are still finalizing targets, timing, and means for a response to Iran's missile attack, according to a person in Washington familiar with the discussions.

Israel may not feel compelled to strike back immediately, given its success in thwarting the Iranian attack. But it is unlikely to wait for long out of concern a retaliatory move would lose effectiveness as a deterrent if delayed, the US source said.

Unlike in the aftermath of Iran’s April attack, the US is not pressing Israel to refrain from retaliation but wants Israel to carefully consider potential consequences first, the source said.

US President Joe Biden doesn’t back an Israeli retaliatory strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities but has striven to build a broad international consensus for a response to the Islamic Republic’s missile strike against the Jewish state Tuesday.

"We'll be discussing with the Israelis what they're going to do, but all seven of us (G7 nations) agree that they have a right to respond, but they should respond proportionally," Biden told reporters before boarding Air Force One. He said he would be speaking soon with Netanyahu but did not give a timeline for that call.

“Iran is way off board,” he said. “There is going to be some sanctions imposed on Iran,” he stressed. 

But when asked if he would support an Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, Biden said, “No.”

Earlier Biden joined a conversation with G7 countries — the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom — on the Israeli-Iranian crisis as the proxy war between the two arch-foes threatened to spill over into a larger regional conflict.

“They discussed Iran's unacceptable attack against Israel” and the need for a coordinated response, including additional sanctions on Iran, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One.

Reuters contributed to this report.