Kirby calls idea Iran gave US warning about Israel attack ‘ridiculous’
White House national security communications adviser John Kirby on Monday disputed reports that Iranian officials provided the United States advance notice of the timing and targets of its attacks against Israel over the weekend.
“This whole narrative out there that Iran passed us a message with what they were gonna do is ridiculous,” Kirby told reporters at a briefing.
Kirby told reporters Iran had failed in its attack against Israel on Saturday, in which it launched hundreds of drones and missiles in response to an Israeli strike against an Iranian compound in Syria.
Kirby was adamant the United States was not given any advance warning about the time frame or targets involved, instead crediting the capabilities of Israel and its partners with intercepting most of the missiles.
Reuters reported Iran gave wide notice days in advance of its attack, citing Turkish, Jordanian and Iraqi officials. All three nations are U.S. allies.
“All I’m telling you is it’s nonsense,” Kirby said of those reports.
“Can you imagine a world in which Iran would pick up the phone and say, ‘We’re about to try to shwack Israel with 300 cruise missiles and drones, we just wanted to let you know it’s coming and oh by the way, here’s what we’re going to hit,'” Kirby continued. “I’m sorry, it just didn’t happen. I can’t account for what sources might be telling you about what they heard. I’m telling you what we heard.”
Kirby said the U.S. did get a message from Iran and passed messages to Iran as well, though he did not elaborate on the details of those communications. But he said none of them involved the specifics of Iran’s attack over the weekend.
President Biden spoke Saturday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following the attack, and he has vowed “ironclad” support for Israel.
“Together with our partners, we defeated that attack,” Biden said Monday during an Oval Office meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
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