During a visit to Israel, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin highlighted that “we’re working to ensure that this conflict does not escalate beyond Gaza. But as we are driving to stabilise the region, Iran is raising tensions by continuing to support terrorist groups and militias. Attacks by these Iranian proxies threaten the region’s citizens and risk a broader conflict. Of course, the U.S. does not seek war, and we urgently call on Iran to take steps to de-escalate”. During the same event, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant contended that “Hamas, Hizbollah and the Houthis are funded, supported, and trained by one source of evil, Iran, and unfortunately, this is only their secondary effort. Iran's major effort is acquiring military nuclear capabilities, and this continue[s] even now”.