The restrained scope of Israel’s recent airstrikes on Iran highlights an unusual display of American influence in the region’s latest military escalation, according to Gideon Levy, an advisor to former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres.
Levy shared that Washington has been urging Israel in recent weeks to avoid targeting critical Iranian infrastructure, specifically nuclear sites and oil fields. In line with this counsel, Israel’s retaliatory strikes focused strictly on Iran’s missile production facilities and air defense systems, a measured response to Tehran’s earlier missile attacks.
“For a moment, logic prevailed,” Levy remarked, crediting the US for Israel’s unusually contained response. “The American influence finally had some effect because Israel really went for the most measured operation that one can expect,” he said in an interview with CNN on Saturday.
Levy, also a columnist for Haaretz, noted that Israel’s responsiveness to US advice has been rare, especially during recent conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon. He characterized Israel’s latest action as a “fair retaliation,” reflecting a momentary alignment with American strategic interests in the region.
