For the second time in six months, the Iranian regime has attacked Israel. On October 1, Iran launched a barrage of some 200 ballistic missiles, an attack nearly twice the size of the one launched by Iran against Israel in April.
“This is totally unacceptable, and the entire world should condemn it,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
“Initial reports suggest that Israel, with the active support of the United States and other partners, effectively defeated this attack. We demonstrated, once again, our commitment to Israel’s defense. We’ll remain in very close touch with Israel and other partners in the region in the hours and days ahead.”
Vice President Kamala Harris called the attack by Iran “reckless and brazen.”
“Iran is a destabilizing dangerous force in the Middle East, and today’s attack on Israel only further demonstrates that fact. … I fully support President Biden’s order for the U.S. military to shoot down Iranian missiles targeting Israel, just as we did in April,” she said. “Our joint defenses have been effective, and this operation and successful cooperation saved many innocent lives.”
“U.S. forces in the Middle East intercepted multiple missiles launched by Iran toward Israel, as we fulfilled our commitment to partner with Israel in its defense,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in a statement. “We condemn this outrageous act of aggression by Iran, and we call on Iran to halt any further attacks, including from its proxy terrorist groups. We will never hesitate to protect our forces and interests in the Middle East, and to support the defense of Israel and our partners in the region.”
State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller noted that the October 1 attack by Iran on Israel demonstrates the long-predicted danger of Iran’s arming and funding terrorist groups across the Mideast. “The attack today just demonstrated the danger of those actions. What you saw was Iran launching a state-on-state attack to protect and defend the terrorist groups that it has built, nurtured and that it controls,” said Spokesperson Miller. “As the President has made clear, our support for Israel’s security is ironclad. We will continue to stand with the people of Israel at this critical moment.”
