The Kremlin said on Tuesday that it saw that Israel did not want mediation efforts over its conflict with Iran, now in its fifth day amid what Moscow said was "galloping escalation".

Shapiro served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East until January—charged with, among other things, considering scenarios in which tensions between Israel and Iran escalated into all-out war and preparing U.

Israel and Iran kept up their attacks, killing and wounding civilians and raising concern among world leaders meeting in Canada this week that the biggest battle between the two old enemies could lead to a broader regional conflict.