There US retaliation for the drone attack that killed three American soldiers in Jordan has begun. Yesterday the US Army actually carried out airstrikes on 85 targets in Iraq and Syria. The operation, which lasted about half an hour, was described as “a success” by the White House, but no further details on damage, injuries or victims are yet known.
US officials said the strikes hit four facilities in Syria and three in Iraq, where damage was reported in the town of Al-Qaim. The sites allegedly belonged to various Iran-backed militias, which the United States blames for the attack in Jordan.
More than 125 'precision munitions' were used in the air strikes. The list of targets includes command and control centers, operations and intelligence centers, rocket, missile and drone depots, logistics facilities and ammunition supply centers for militia groups and the Revolutionary Guards who facilitated attacks against US and coalition forces.
The attacks, Biden's line, the intentions of the USA
The deadly drone attack in Jordan was just the latest in a series of more than 165 attacks against American forces in the Middle East by various 'proxy' groups of Iran since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas.
The president of the United States Joe Biden he then explained that the US response demonstrates how his administration will not tolerate the damage suffered by Americans. Biden, who yesterday in Delaware participated in the solemn reception of the bodies of the three killed soldiers, the 'dignified transfer', explained that “the United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or in any other part of the world”, but also “let all who might seek to harm us know this: If you harm an American, we will respond.”
It was only “the beginning of our response”, the defense secretary promised Lloyd Austin. Both said the U.S. response would continue “at times and places of our choosing.” Meanwhile, Biden is looking a delicate balance: Deter further attacks on its troops while avoiding a full-scale conflict with Iran.
The attack in Jordan follows weeks of efforts by U.S. and regional leaders to prevent a broader war in the Middle East, even as conflicts have expanded to involve Tehran's proxies, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah and Houthi rebels in Yemen.
THE Air Force B-1 bombers, CNN explains, are among the US planes that carried out the attacks. The B-1 is a long-range heavy bomber that can deploy precision and non-precision weapons. According to Lieutenant General Douglas Sims, the bomber crews flew to the region from the United States in a single non-stop flight. The Army is confident we “hit exactly what we intended to hit,” Sims told CNN, crediting the precision of the B-1 crews.
The spokesperson of the National Security Council John Kirby he then explained that the United States informed the Iraqi government of the plans before carrying out the attacks. However, he claimed that there had been no communications with Iran after the attack on Jordan.
Meanwhile, a senior Biden administration official told CNN that the United States will not strike “inside” Iran, focusing only on targets outside the country. Striking Iran directly, it is argued, would be a huge escalation, and officials have explained that this is unlikely to happen.
Baghdad's anger: “Attacks violate our sovereignty”
The US attacks constitute a “violation of Iraqi sovereignty” and represent a threat whose consequences will be “adverse to security and stability”. The warning comes from the spokesperson of the commander in chief of the Iraqi armed forces, General Yahya Rasul Abdullah. “The cities of Al-Qaim and the Iraqi border areas were targeted by US airstrikes, at a time when Iraq is trying to ensure stability in the region“added Abdullah.
“These attacks – he added – represent a violation of Iraqi sovereignty” and will cause “a weakening of the Iraqi government's efforts, and will represent a threat that will drag Iraq and the region towards undesirable and disastrous consequences for security and stability”.
Damascus: “Deaths among civilians and soldiers, significant damage”
US attacks on Syria have caused casualties among civilians and military personnel and caused “significant damage”. The complaint – reports CNN – comes from Damascus: the United States “launched an open air attack against a certain number of sites and cities in the eastern region of Syria and near the Syrian-Iraqi border, which led to the death of a number of civilians and soldiers, to the injury of others and significant damage to public and private property,” the Syrian Ministry of Defense said this morning. Syria's state news agency SANA reported that the airstrikes hit the areas of Deir Ezzor, Al-Bukamal and Al-Mayadeen.
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