Limited scope of Israeli strikes proof of US influence, former Israel PM says

PARIS, October 26, 2024 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) -  The measured scope of Israel’s retaliation against Iran was a rare show of Washington’s influence over recent Middle East conflict, an advisor to a former Israeli prime minister said.

US officials had in recent weeks made clear they did not want Israel to target Iranian nuclear sites or oil fields.

On Saturday, Israel said it strictly targeted Iran’s missile manufacturing sites and aerial defense systems, in its attack in response to Tehran’s previous ballistic missiles barrages.

“Finally, for a moment, this logic prevails and … the American influence finally had some effect because Israel really went [for] the most measured operation that one can expect,” Gideon Levy, ex-aide to former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres, told CNN on Saturday.

Levy, also a columnist at the newspaper Haaretz, noted that it had become rare for Israel to heed US advice over the past year during it wars in Gaza and Lebanon, calling its latest strike against Iran a “fair retaliation.”