Israel assures US it won't strike Iranian nuclear or oil sites, US officials say
Washington, Oct 15: The Biden administration believes it has won assurances from Israel that it will not hit Iranian nuclear or oil sites as it looks to strike back following Iran's missile barrage earlier this month, two US officials said Tuesday.
The administration also believes that sending a US Terminal High Altitude Area Defence battery to Israel and roughly 100 soldiers to operate it has eased some of Israel's concerns about possible Iranian retaliation and general security issues.
The Pentagon on Sunday announced the THAAD deployment to help bolster Israel's air defences following Iran's ballistic missile attacks on Israel in April and October, saying it was authorized at the direction of President Joe Biden.
However, the US officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private diplomatic discussions, cautioned that the assurance is not iron-clad and that circumstances could change. The officials also noted that Israel's track record on fulfilling assurances in the past is mixed and has often reflected domestic Israeli politics that have upended Washington's expectations.
The most recent example of that was last month when US officials were told by their Israeli counterparts that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would welcome a US- and French-led temporary cease-fire initiative for Lebanon only to see Israel launch a massive airstrike that killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah two days later.
Netanyahu's office said in a statement that “we listen to the opinions of the United States, but we will make our final decisions based on our national interests”.
The Middle East has been bracing for an expected response from Israel after Iran launched roughly 180 ballistic missiles on Oct 1, which the United States helped to fend off. The tit-for-tat strikes and uncertainty about whether Israel might strike strategically important energy and nuclear sites in Iran have raised fears about escalation into an all-out regional war.
Israel's offensive against Iranian-backed Hamas group in Gaza has expanded into a ground invasion of Lebanon targeting Hezbollah, another Iranian proxy that has been firing into Israel since the conflict in Gaza started a year ago in solidarity with Hamas.
Biden has said he would not support a retaliatory Israeli strike on sites related to Tehran's nuclear programme and urged Israel to consider alternatives to hitting Iran's oil sector. Such a strike could affect the global oil market and boost pump prices just ahead of the US presidential election.
Biden and Netanyahu spoke by phone last week for the first time in seven weeks, while Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has been speaking regularly with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant.
The Pentagon said in a readout of a call from Sunday that the US has reaffirmed its support for Israel's security but urged it to ensure protections for UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, shift from military operations to a diplomatic solution and “raised concern for the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and stressed that steps must be taken soon to address it”.
The White House National Security Council declined to confirm that Netanyahu offered Biden any assurances about targets.
“Our commitment to Israel's defence is ironclad,” the White House National Security Council said in a statement. “We will not discuss private diplomatic discussions and would refer you to the Israeli government to speak to their own potential military operations.”
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Sabarimala Tantri 'trapped' in gold loss case: Cong; CPI(M) alleges he is among 'big thieves'
Thiruvananthapuram/Kannur (PTI): The arrest of Sabarimala Tantri Kadararu Rajeevaru in the gold loss case triggered a fresh war of words in Kerala on Sunday with the opposition Congress alleging that the chief priest was "deliberately trapped" in the case, while the ruling CPI(M) said he figured in a "list of big thieves".
The recent observation by the Kollam Vigilance Court that there was no iota of evidence against Rajeevaru in the case led to fresh political debate in the state, with opposition parties targeting the state government.
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala alleged that the Tantri (chief priest) was "deliberately trapped" in the gold loss case and suspected political intervention behind his arrest without any evidence.
Addressing a press conference here, he claimed that the Special Investigation Team (SIT), probing the case, was controlled by the Chief Minister's Office and Rajeevaru was arrested to prevent the investigation reaching some "big shots".
Chennithala alleged that the SIT failed to comply with the directions issued by the Kerala High Court and did not conduct a proper probe into the alleged conspiracy behind the case.
Though the tantri is a person who is revered as the father of Lord Ayyappa, he was arrested and jailed for 41 days without any evidence, he said.
The Kollam Vigilance court, which had granted bail to the tantri, clearly stated that there was no iota of evidence against him. "So, we should assume that the Sabarimala tantri was deliberately trapped in the case. It is clear that there was a political intervention to arrest the tantri," he alleged.
He further alleged that though there was clear evidence to arrest certain "big shots", no action has been taken so far in this regard.
The tantri was arrested and jailed to divert the course of the investigation and to ensure that it does not reach Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan and former minister Kadakampally Surendran, he said.
He also accused former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president P S Prasanth of "committing serious lapses" in connection with the gold loss issue. But, he was questioned secretly and let go, he said.
The decision to sabotage the SIT probe was taken at a higher level after the ruling LDF had suffered a massive drubbing in the recent LSGD polls, he alleged.
People of the state would give a befitting reply to what he termed as "political misuse" of the case.
CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan rejected the Congress allegations and asserted that no one involved in the matter would be protected.
Speaking to reporters in Kannur, he said the SIT probe is yet to be completed and claimed that Congress leaders also have a role in the alleged gold theft.
He alleged that certain political parties were attempting to use the issue to target the CPI(M) and the state government, adding that "news becomes news only when it is against the CPI(M) and the government, but not when it is against the BJP or the Congress."
Responding to the allegations that the arrest of Rajeevaru was linked to his opposition to women's entry at the hill shrine, Govindan said the tantri figures in the "list of big thieves" and asserted that no one involved in the matter would be protected.
The law would take its own course, he said, adding that not "a speck of gold" from Sabarimala should go missing.
Asked about the court observations granting bail to Tantri, state Law Minister P Rajeev said there were some unusual aspects involved in it.
"If a High Court division bench has observed that the investigation is proceeding in the right direction, it is not usual for a lower court, while considering a bail plea, to make observations that appear like a final verdict in the case," he told media in Kochi.
He said such powers can be exercised by the Supreme Court.
"While reading the order, those with a basic understanding of law may feel that the Vigilance Court has adopted an approach akin to that of the Supreme Court,” the minister further said.
Rajeev further said that unlike in other cases, the state government was not exercising any supervisory role in the matter and that decisions such as whether to file an appeal against the bail order did not come before the government.
“The High Court division bench is monitoring all aspects related to the case," he said adding that reports on the progress of the investigation and that regarding each arrest in the case had been submitted before it by the SIT.
The vigilance court in Kollam on Wednesday granted bail to Rajeevaru in the cases related to alleged misappropriation of gold from the Lord Ayyappa shrine.
Rajeevaru is the 16th accused in the case related to the loss of gold from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols and 13th accused in the case pertaining to the loss of the precious metal from the door frames of the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum).
