April 12 (UPI) — The United States is restricting travel for government employees and their families in Israel as Iran threatens to retaliate for an April 1 airstrike on its embassy in Damascus.
Late Friday, President Joe Biden told reporters he feared any possible attack might come “sooner” rather than later.
The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem announced Thursday in a statement that government staff and their family members were restricted from personal travel outside greater Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Be-er Sheva until further notice.
It said it was enforcing the restriction “out of an abundance of caution.”
“In response to security incidents and without advance notice, the U.S. Embassy may further restrict or prohibit U.S. government employees and their family members from traveling to certain areas of Israel (including the Old City of Jerusalem) and the West Bank,” it said.
Several military officers of Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including its top commander in Syria, Brig. Gen. Mohammad Reza Zahedi, were killed in an April 1 airstrike that hit near Tehran’s embassy in Syria.
Iran has blamed Israel for the attack and has repeatedly vowed retribution.
“When the Zionist regime attacks an Iranian consulate in Syria, it is as if it has attacked Iranian soil,” Iran’s spiritual leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei wrote on X this week. “That malicious regime has made a wrong move. It should be punished, and it will be punished.”
When the Zionist regime attacks an Iranian consulate in Syria, it is as if it has attacked Iranian soil. That malicious regime has made a wrong move. It should be punished, and it will be punished.— Khamenei.ir (@khamenei_ir) April 10, 2024
Israel has warned Tehran against retaliation, stating it will directly target Iranian territory if it does.
In response to the Iranian threat, the Biden administration has assured Israel of the United States’ support of its security.
Defense Secretary Secretary Lloyd Austin relayed the messaged Thursday afternoon to his Israeli counterpart, Pentagon press secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pay Ryder said in a press conference, stating the military chief “reaffirmed the U.S. ironclad commitment to Israel’s security against threats from Iran and its proxies.”
Biden at a press conference Friday said he expects Iran will attack Israel “sooner than later.”
“I don’t want to get into secure information, but my expectation is sooner than later,” Biden told reporters.
When reporters asked Biden what his message was to Tehran, he replied “don’t.”
Since Oct. 7, Israel has been at war in Gaza against Hamas, one of several Iran proxy militias operating in the Middle East.
Amid the war, the Iran-backed groups have become emboldened. The Houthis in Yemen have been attacking shipping vessels in the Red Sea while Hezbollah have been directly attacking Israel from Lebanon and Syria.
The Israeli army has address some of the strikes against Hezbollah, but has yet to comment on the April 1 attack.