The situation in the Middle East is deteriorating after an attack on a US base. US Secretary of State Blinken warns of an escalation.
Washington, DC – The deadly drone attack by pro-Iranian militias on US soldiers near the Syrian border in Jordan has raised new fears around the world about a widening crisis in the Middle East. According to the Pentagon, three US soldiers were killed and more than 40 others were injured in the attack last Sunday (January 28). US President Joe Biden threatened retaliation.
There is increasing concern in the USA. According to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the situation in the Middle East is more dangerous than it has been for a long time. “I submit that we have not experienced a situation as dangerous as this one in the entire region since at least 1973 – perhaps even before that,” Blinken said at a joint press conference in Washington on Monday (January 29). NATO-General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg. “That’s the environment in which we operate.”
With the year, Blinken was obviously referring to the 19-day Yom Kippur War that began on October 6, 1973. At that time, an alliance of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria came as a surprise Israel ambushed. More than 2,600 Israeli soldiers were killed and more than 7,000 were injured.
As recently as October, the USA emphasized the calm situation in the Middle East
Last year it all sounded completely different. Immediately before the outbreak of the war in Israel, Jake Sullivan, national security adviser to the USA, provides a long list of positive developments in the Middle East. There is a ceasefire in Yemen. Iranian attacks on US forces have stopped. America's presence in Iraq is “stable.”
The good news climaxed with this statement: “The Middle East region is calmer today than it has been in two decades,” Sullivan said in early October 2023. Developments that allowed the Joe Biden administration to focus on other regions and others to focus on problems.
USA wants to prevent escalation in the Middle East
Now Blinken warned against attempts to exploit the conflict in the Middle East to sow further instability. We will respond decisively to any aggression. At the same time, Blinken emphasized that the US government's goal was to prevent escalation in the region. “It is important to us to do both: stand up for our people when they are under attack and prevent the conflict from growing and spreading.”
Since the beginning of the Gaza war between Israel and the Islamist Hamas In October, pro-Iranian militias carried out almost daily attacks on US military bases in Iraq and Syria. The US government responded with air strikes in both countries.
In addition, the Yemeni Houthi rebels – in solidarity with Hamas – repeatedly attack freighters in the Red Sea. In response, the US and Great Britain with the help of allies, carried out military strikes against the Iranian-backed militia in Yemen.
War in the Middle East: Hope for a ceasefire
At least Blinken has expressed hope about an agreement on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip in return for the release of hostages kidnapped from Israel. “Very important, productive work was done. And there is real hope for the future,” Blinken told reporters on Monday. This was preceded by talks with the Qatari Prime Minister al-Thani.
The radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas will “have to make its own decisions,” Blinken said. “All I can tell you is that there is good, strong agreement between the countries involved that this is a good, strong proposal.”
According to Israeli information, 132 of the 250 hostages are still in the Palestinian territory. These include the bodies of at least 28 dead hostages. (skr/dpa)
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