Sunday’s attack killed three US soldiers and wounded more than 40. It was the first deadly attack on US troops since the Israel-Hamas war erupted last October and sparked widespread tensions in the Middle East.
“The president and I will not tolerate attacks on American forces and we will take all necessary actions to defend America and our troops,” Austin said at the start of a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the Pentagon.
William Jerome, Breonna Alexsondria Moffett and Kennedy Ladon Sanders, the US soldiers killed in the attack. Photo: US Army
“As the president said yesterday, we will respond and that response could be multi-level, phased and sustained over time,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
But Biden administration officials say they do not want the situation to escalate, and the Pentagon says Iran, which the US accuses of backing militant groups in Syria and Iraq that carried out the attack, does not want war either.
“We are certainly not looking for a war and frankly, we do not see Iran seeking a war with the United States,” Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters.
“We are not seeking conflict,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said, adding that Mr. Biden was looking for other deterrence and response options.
The US is trying to determine exactly why the nearly 350 troops at the base in Jordan, known as Tower 22, failed to intercept the drones.
Two officials said the reason may have been because a U.S. drone was also approaching the base at the same time the attack drone was arriving. One of the officials said the attack drone was also flying low, factors that may have caused it to be missed by base defenders.
The US military has released the names of the victims, the youngest of whom was 23-year-old reserve specialist Breonna Alexsondria Moffett. US troops have been attacked more than 160 times in Iraq, Syria and Jordan since October 7, and US warships have also been attacked by Yemen's Houthi rebels in the Red Sea.
Experts warn that any attack on Iranian forces inside Iran could force Tehran to respond forcefully, escalating the situation in a way that could drag the United States into a major war in the Middle East.
Huy Hoang (according to Reuters)
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