US President Joe Biden may soon authorize US military action in the Middle East. His advisers offer him options for a response, from symbolic to brutally punitive. This is what Sky News says.
“The president hopes that his choice in the coming hours will limit any escalation of the situation. That could backfire. He can attack the group responsible, but many see that as weak and not addressing the heart of the problem: the group’s supporters in Iran .The Pentagon’s list of options also includes action against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the region outside Iran or attacking Iranian installations within its borders,” the publication said.
The US has threatened “all necessary action” in response to the strike in Jordan
US troops have been attacked more than 150 times in Iraq, Syria, Jordan
The Pentagon suggests that the drone attack on American troops in Jordan bears the imprint of Kataib Hezbollah, an elite Iraqi armed group close to Iran.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said their response could be “layered, phased and sustainable over time”.
Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said the United States will do whatever it takes to protect its forces but is not seeking to get involved in a larger conflict.
The Biden administration is looking for an answer, which is tough enough to contain Iran and its supporterswithout provoking direct military action.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin vowed on Monday that the United States would take “all necessary action” to protect their troops after a drone attack by Iran-backed militants killed three American soldiers and wounded dozens of others.
The attack on Sunday was the first lethal strike against US forces since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in October and marked a major escalation of tensions in the Middle East.
Iran denies being behind drone attack in Jordan
He blames it on the conflict between US forces and resistance groups in the region
US troops have been attacked more than 150 times in Iraq, Syria, Jordan, as well as in the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Houthi fighters fire drones and missiles at them.
The attacks are piling political pressure on President Joe Biden to strike directly at Iran, a move he is reluctant to make for fear of igniting a wider war.
Biden’s response options could range from targeting Iranian forces outside and even inside Iran, or opting for a more cautious retaliatory strike solely against the Iranian-backed fighters responsible, experts say.
2024-01-29 23:24:24
#Biden #strike #Middle #East
