Following a string of attacks on the American military in the Middle East, the White House said on Thursday that President Joe Biden had issued a rare message to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei of Iran, cautioning Tehran against launching attacks on American people there.

At a press briefing, White House spokesman John Kirby stated, “There was a direct message relayed,” without providing any details.

Iran’s U.N. delegation did not immediately answer an inquiry for comment. Following the terrorist Hamas group’s October 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of at least 1,400 people, the majority of whom were civilians, U.S. officials hope to prevent a larger battle in the Middle East.

According to the Pentagon, some 900 more American soldiers are on their way or have just arrived to reinforce air defenses and safeguard American personnel in the face of increased threats by organizations with ties to Iran. It further stated that there had been at least 12 attacks on American forces in Iraq and 4 in Syria during the previous week.

On Wednesday, Biden said he had informed the Ayatollah that if American soldiers were still being attacked, the U.S. would act, but he did not specify how.

“I informed the Ayatollah that we would react if they persisted in attacking those troops, so he needed to be ready. It’s unrelated to Israel,” he informed reporters.

Aides to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi refuted Biden’s claim in a social media post before Kirby’s speech.

“The communications from the U.S. side were requests only and were not addressed to the head of the Islamic Revolution. A Raisi aide named Mohammad Jamshidi wrote, “If Biden believes he has forewarned Iran, he should ask his team to show him the text of the messages.”

Separately, Iran’s official news agency IRNA quoted an unidentified source stating that the U.S. had conveyed to Iran and certain Iranian allies, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, that it was not looking to escalate the conflict and was advising them to use caution.

“The United States cannot both send military equipment to the Israeli regime and take charge of managing the war with one hand, while issuing political messages with the other hand, and speak about its opposition to the expansion of the war,” according to IRNA, adding that Iran’s partners “act independently and are not subject to Tehran’s orders.”

In reprisal for the October 7 raid, in which the terrorist organization kidnapped approximately 200 people, Israel has pledged to destroy Hamas, which controls Gaza. Israel has launched airstrikes against Gaza, established a blockade, and is getting ready to invade on land.

According to Palestinian officials, over 7,000 people have reportedly died, although Biden has expressed doubt about these figures. Reuters has not independently confirmed the number of fatalities.

The United States would “not be spared from this fire,” according to Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who made this statement on Thursday at the U.N. over Israel’s reprisal against Palestinian terrorists Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Arming and supporting terrorist organizations like Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen, and Shi’ite militias in Iraq is one way Iran projects influence.

The U.S. military launched several airstrikes in Syria on March 23 against forces affiliated with Iran, alleging that the drone assault that resulted in the death of an American contractor, the injuries of another, and the wounding of five U.S. service members was the cause of the last known American response.