Following the phone call President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu held Thursday night, senior White House officials told Walla that, at least for now, no meeting between the two leaders is being planned. The clarification came despite Trump saying over the weekend that they were expected to meet soon and the Prime Minister’s Office announcing last week that a meeting in the United States had been agreed upon.

Iran, meanwhile, issued its first direct threat against Israel since the latest escalation with the United States began. Mohammad-Bagher Zolqadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, warned that attacks on Iranian infrastructure would be met with similar retaliation and that the “Zionist regime” would not be immune.

At the same time, Washington is seeking to prevent Israel from entering the current fighting. Two Israeli sources told CNN that the Trump administration fears Israeli involvement could cause the conflict to spiral out of control. One source said Netanyahu “would really want to join the U.S. strikes,” but that Washington does not want Israel involved at this stage.

Israeli sources also told i24NEWS that Iran currently has no interest in drawing Israel into the regional confrontation and is therefore not firing at Israel. The Iranian threat, however, suggests that could change if Tehran believes Israel is involved in attacks on its infrastructure.

Qatari mediators recently traveled to Iran in an effort to lower tensions and encourage renewed negotiations with the United States, Reuters reported. The talks in Tehran were coordinated with Washington.

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