In the Israel-Hamas war, the U.S. supports Israel and Iran defends Hamas. As a result, the long-running tensions between the U.S. and Iran continue to be exacerbated.
The U.S. told outside countries and groups that might lend support to Hamas to stay out of Israel’s war.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian hinted on Friday, Oct. 13, that the country’s allies, including the terrorist organization Hezbollah, could soon join the war. Hamas officials also hinted at Iran joining in if Israel continues its retaliatory strikes on Gaza.
While the U.S. has Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Israel meeting with top Israeli officials, Iran’s foreign minister met with top officials from Hezbollah.
Hezbollah has fired more than a dozen rockets at Israel in recent days. While the conflict with Hamas is on the southern border, Hezbollah is attacking Israel from the north.
“If these organized war crimes that are committed by the Zionist entity don’t stop immediately, then we can imagine any possibility,” Amir-Abdollahian said.
Interests in the war are starkly different between the U.S. and Iran.
Iraq and Yemen, countries aligned with Iran, threatened to target U.S. bases with missiles and drone strikes if Washington continues to support Israel. Massive crowds of protesters in the Middle East are aligned with the Iranian regime against Israel and the U.S.
The U.S. remains suspicious of Iran’s involvement in the surprise attack by Hamas that sparked the war. There is enough suspicion and tension between the two sides that the Biden administration has gone back on part of its recent prisoner exchange deal with Iran and refroze the $6 billion dollars in Iranian assets after getting pressure from Democrats and Republicans alike.
Iran responded on Friday, contradicting the U.S.
“The U.S. government knows that it can NOT renege on the agreement,” Ali Karimi Magham said on X. “The money rightfully belongs to the people of Iran, earmarked for the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to facilitate the acquisition of all essential requisites for the Iranians.”
Iran and the U.S. have been at odds for decades over human rights violations, oil, terrorism, Iran’s desire for regional hegemony and the regime’s nuclear ambitions. The latest point of tension is not only the war overseas but accusations of Iranian infiltration in U.S. intelligence.
Days before the war in Israel broke out, senators called on the U.S. Department of Defense and State Department to investigate two top Biden administration officials over potentially compromising ties with the Iranian regime.
