David Cameron Urges Israel ‘Not To Escalate’ But ‘Take The Win’ After Iran Attack

Foreign Minister Lord David Cameron called on Israeli’s to be “smart as well as tough” by choosing to “not escalate” following Iran’s drone swarm attack on Saturday, which he called a “double defeat”, and urged Israel, instead, to “take the win.”

The attack, involving over 300 missiles and drones, inflicted only minimal damage due to the effectiveness of Israel’s Iron Dome defence system and allied air support from the U.S., Britain, France, and Jordan.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast during press rounds on Monday, Cameron made a plea for strategic calm on the part of Israel.

Cameron said: “I think they’re perfectly justified to think they should respond because they have been attacked. But we are urging them, as friends, to think with head as well as heart, to be smart as well as tough, and to recognize Iran suffered this defeat because the attack was a failure. The world can see what a malign influence they are. And I think that the right thing to do is not to escalate, but as President Biden has put it, to sort of take the win, as it were.”

He continued: “And then let’s focus the world’s attention onto Hamas, who are still holding those hostages, including British nationals. They’ve been offered a deal by Israel to release many, many prisoners out of Israeli prisons and to have a pause in the fighting in Gaza.
And Hamas should take that deal. They’re the only reason why this fighting continues.”

Concluding, he added: “So de-escalation, trying to calm the situation, is what we’re trying to do. But I totally understand ordinary Israelis waking up this morning and thinking we should respond because we’ve been attacked but we’ve got to be smart as well as tough.”

Speaking specifically about the attack Cameron said that the move was “a double defeat for Iran” and “an almost total failure.” He said that Iran had “revealed to the world that they are the malign influence in the region prepared to do this.”

He emphasised, again: “Our hope is that there won’t be a retaliatory response [from Israel].”

Cameron then disclosed Britain’s plans to collaborate with allies on imposing additional sanctions on Iran.

Watch above on BBC Breakfast.