CIA Director William Burns said on Monday (7) that the risk of unintentional escalation in the Middle East presents itself as “a very real danger”, even if the US maintains its assessment that neither Iran nor Israel “is looking for all-out conflict.”
Israel is “carefully considering how it will respond to the latest Iranian ballistic missile attack,” Burns said at a national security conference on Sea Island, Georgia, declining to speculate on what form that retaliation could take.
“I think we are all very aware of the consequences of different forms of attacks and consequences for the global energy market and the global economy,” he said.
US President Joe Biden said last week that he would not support an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, but it is unclear whether the Americans have managed to persuade Israel to take that option off the table. Markets have also been at risk due to the possibility that Israel may choose to attack oil facilities in Iran.
The biggest risk of escalation, Burns said, comes from “erroneous judgments,” what he called “things happen.”
On Iran, the Supreme Leader remains the “final decision maker,” he said. The director stated that his agency did not detect “any kind of dramatic change in tone there.”
Burns also said he is hopeful that a successful agreement can be reached between Israel and Hamas, which could result in the release of the remaining live hostages. But these negotiations, he said, “have pushed a very big boulder up a very steep hill.”
“We’ve come close at least a few times, but it’s been very difficult to achieve,” he said.
“The president has made it very clear that all of us will continue to do everything we can, with eyes wide open – I have learned not to be hopeful about this issue over the last year – but with real determination, given the fact that when I meet with the families of the hostages, is not only harrowing, but also inspiring, given the depth of their commitment to their loved ones,” he said.
Understand the escalation in conflicts in the Middle East
Iran’s missile attack on Israel on the 1st marked a new stage in the regional conflict in the Middle East. On one side of the war is Israel, with support from the United States. On the other, the Axis of Resistance, which receives financial and military support from Iran and which has a series of paramilitary groups.
There are seven conflict fronts currently open: the Islamic Republic of Iran; Hamas, in the Gaza Strip; Hezbollah, in Lebanon; the Syrian government and the militias operating in the country; the Houthis, in Yemen; Shia groups in Iraq; and different militant organizations in the West Bank.
Israel has soldiers on three of these fronts: Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In the other four, it carries out aerial bombings.
The Israeli Army began a “limited ground operation” in Lebanon on September 30, days after Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a bombing of the group’s headquarters in the Beirut suburb.
The Israel Defense Forces say they have killed virtually the entire Hezbollah chain of command in similar bombings carried out in recent weeks.
On September 23, Lebanon had its deadliest day since the 2006 war, with more than 500 fatalities.
At least two Brazilian teenagers died in the attacks. Itamaraty condemned the situation and called for an end to hostilities.
With the increase in hostilities, the Brazilian government announced an operation to repatriate Brazilians in Lebanon.
In the West Bank, the Israeli military is trying to dismantle groups opposed to Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory.
In the Gaza Strip, Israel seeks to eradicate Hamas, responsible for the October 7 attack that left more than 1,200 people dead, according to information from the Israeli government. The Israeli operation killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health, controlled by Hamas.
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar remains hidden in tunnels in the Gaza Strip, where dozens of Israelis kidnapped by Hamas are also believed to be in captivity.
This content was originally published in CIA director says Israel is still “carefully considering” response to Iran on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil

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