White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said Iran should not respond to Israel’s strikes carried out last week, but if it does, the US will support Israel, Al Jazeera reports.

“Iran should not respond to Israel’s retaliation. They should not,” Jean-Pierre said at a news briefing.

“If they do, we will support Israel in defending itself, but they should not,” she said.

Jean-Pierre’s comments come after US media reported, citing an anonymous Iranian source, that Iran will deliver a “definitive and painful” response to Israel, likely before the US presidential election on November 5.