Blinken seemingly urges restraint from Israel in first public remarks after Iran attack

WASHINGTON, April 15 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent a veiled message Monday to Israel, urging the country to act with restraint in a potential response to the attack launched by Iran over the weekend.

In his first public remarks following the attack, Blinken said before a meeting with an Iraqi delegation at the State Department that in the 36 hours since the attack, the United States has been "coordinating a diplomatic response to prevent escalation" in the region.

"Strength and wisdom need to be different sides of the same coin," Blinken said in what seemed to be an implicit call for Israel to exercise restraint in its response.

Standing alongside Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Muhammad Ali Tamim -- who would co-chair a U.S.-Iraq Higher Coordinating Committee meeting with Blinken afterwards -- the secretary said he has been in "close communication" with his counterparts in the region "and will continue to do so in the hours and days ahead."

At the time Blinken spoke, Israel's war cabinet was wrapping up a meeting on the response to Iran's attack, according to a CNN report citing an Israeli official.

The Joe Biden administration has been trying to prevent an overreaction by Israel that would lead to a catastrophic regional war. In a Saturday night call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Biden reportedly warned him against any offensive operations against Iran, saying that Washington would neither take part in nor lend support to such actions.