Biden says he does not want the Middle East conflict ‘spreading’ in talks with Iraqi Prime Minister: President reiterates that he is ‘committed to Israel’s security’… while also demanding a Gaza ceasefire

President Joe Biden said Monday he did not want the conflict in the Middle East to “spread” and reiterated his demand for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

“The United States is committed to a ceasefire that will bring the hostages home and prevent the conflict from spreading,” Biden said in the Oval Office ahead of his meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shyaa Al-Sudani .

“If the United States is committed” to Israel’s security, he added.

Biden has focused on preventing the war in the Middle East from escalating after Iran attacked Israel on Saturday.

He is also calling for a temporary ceasefire in the Gaza Strip so that hostages can be released and humanitarian aid can enter the region.

Complicating matters were Iran’s attacks on Israel last weekend. Biden’s meeting with the Iraqi prime minister was planned long before Tehran fired more than 300 missiles at Tel Aviv.

The United States has had a military presence in Iraq for twenty years. On Saturday evening, a US Patriot battery in Irbil, Iraq, shot down at least one Iranian ballistic missile, according to US officials.

The US helped shoot down dozens of missiles and drones to defend Israel.

However, Iranian allies have initiated attacks from Iraq on US interests throughout the Middle East. These continued attacks have made U.S.-Iraq discussions about regional stability and future U.S. troop deployments all the more important.

“Our partnership is critical to our nations, the Middle East and the world,” Biden told al-Sudani, as the Iraqi leader noted the discussion comes at a “sensitive time.”

Meanwhile, the White House said Monday that Iran has “utterly failed” in its attack on Israel as the country tries to convince Israel’s war cabinet not to retaliate for the 350 missiles, fearing the conflict will degenerate into an all-out war in the Middle East. .

The White House has emphasized that President Biden is pushing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to win.

“The President, in his conversation with Prime Minister Netanyahu, praised the astonishing success they had in shooting down a large, large majority of the missiles and drones fired at them. Very few consequences, no casualties,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on NBC’s Today Show.

‘It was an incredible achievement. And he urged Prime Minister Netanyahu to consider the impact of that great success, not only on Israel’s military superiority, but also on the fact that Iran had utterly failed in what it was trying to do.”

Smoke rises and billows over settlements after the Israeli attack on eastern Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip

US President Joe Biden meets with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani in the Oval Office

Biden is facing mounting pressure to curb the crisis, with defense experts claiming the president has allowed the conflict in Gaza to spread and the expanding battle lines risk attracting allies including the US.

The Israeli government said it is discussing further steps.

Kirby said Monday morning that it was unclear what Israel would ultimately do.

“We have no indication that they have made a decision,” he said on ABC’s Good Morning America, “or what they might do.” Of course it is up to them to decide and participate in the discussion.’

And Kirby told the Today Show: ‘The president made it clear to Prime Minister Netanyahu that there was a lot to be proud of last night in terms of the military success. The president has made it very clear in multiple locations that we are not pursuing war with Iran. We don’t want to see a wider war in the region.”

Iran launched hundreds of missiles and drones on Saturday in response to a drone strike in Syria that killed 12 Iranians, including two top generals.

Israeli forces – together with coalition partners such as the US, Britain, Jordan and France – have shot down 99% of these air-to-air missiles.

Biden spoke with Netanyahu late Saturday evening and made it clear that US troops would not participate further.

The president has urged Netanyahu not to respond to the attacks by retaliating against Iran.

‘You won. Get the win,” Biden reportedly told Netanyahu.

A woman stands among the rubble in front of a collapsed building on the eastern side of the Maghazi camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip

The Israeli prime minister’s war cabinet is in favor of a response, but is divided over the timing and scale of such a response, according to reports.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US is coordinating a diplomatic response to the Iranian attack aimed at preventing further escalation.

“Strength and wisdom must be two sides of the same coin,” Blinken said in what appears to be a message for Israel.