On Saturday night, Iran launched over 300 ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones against Israel for five hours. However, the Israelis were able to intercept 99% of the projectiles with the key support of their allies, including the United States. The attack was in retaliation for the Israeli bombing of the Iranian consulate in Damascus that resulted in the death of 13 Iranians, including a general of the Revolutionary Guard.
As tensions rose, U.S. officials like Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken were in constant communication with Israel and other regional countries. General Michael Erik Kurilla from United States Central Command was sent to Israel to coordinate defense efforts.
The United States also engaged in direct communication with Iran through the Swiss channel, as there are no diplomatic relations between the two countries. Additionally, the U.S. coordinated with allies like the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Turkey, Jordan, and Iraq to prevent a regional escalation.
President Biden personally designed every detail of the defense strategy and ordered the deployment of aircraft and destroyers with anti-missile systems to the region. The defense operation was successful in neutralizing most of the Iranian attack.
During the crisis, Biden and his advisors closely followed the situation from