The head of Israel’s military has said the country would respond to Iran’s weekend attack as several Western countries urged Israel to avoid an escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.

Iran’s attack – launched in retaliation for an Israeli strike on its embassy compound in Damascus earlier this month – has increased fears of open warfare between Israel and Iran and heightened concerns that violence rooted in Israel’s war on Gaza is spreading further in the region.

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and United Kingdom Foreign Secretary David Cameron made similar appeals, echoing calls for restraint by Washington and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.