Iraq’s prime minister said on a visit to Washington that his country is “making every effort” to keep the Middle East conflict from spiraling after Iran rained down missiles on Israel over the weekend,

"We don't want to be part of this escalation,” Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said at a news conference Tuesday evening.

Iraq is in the unusual position of being an ally to both Iran and the U.S., and al-Sudani met with President Joe Biden this week to press his case for tamping down the conflict.