Netanyahu called off retaliatory strike on Iran after call with Biden

Two Israeli officials said some war cabinet members had urged a retaliatory strike, but that was called off after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel spoke by phone with President Biden on Saturday, and because the strikes caused relatively minor damage. The officials did not elaborate on the contents of the call between the leaders. Israel’s defense minister, Yoav Gallant, said early Sunday that the confrontation with Iran was “not over yet.”

Israel’s war cabinet was meeting on Sunday afternoon to discuss possible responses to the overnight attack by Iran, which fired hundreds of exploding drones and missilesin what was believed to be its first direct attack on Israel after years of a shadow war.

Nearly all of the volleys were intercepted, and those that made impact caused only minor damage, Israeli military officials said. The United States said it had shot down dozens of the drones and missiles, a significant show of support for its ally despite widening divisions over Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza.

Iran’s attack, a retaliation for airstrikes on an Iranian Embassy building in Syria on April 1, was not unexpected. As Iran signaled that it would not strike further unless attacked, the focus turned to how Israel would respond, as President Biden and other world leaders appealed for calmand sought to avert a wider war in the Middle East.