Pentagon knows who’s responsible for Jordan drone attack
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails
Sign up to our free breaking news emails
Washington has refused to rule out airstrikes inside Iran and said the US was determined to respond forcefully to attacks on troops.
Asked whether the US had ruled out strikes inside Iran, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said he wouldn’t get into what’s “on and off the table”.
“I’m not going to get into what we’ve ruled in and ruled out from the point of view of military action,” Mr Sullivan told NBC news.
“What I will say is that the president is determined to respond forcefully to attacks on our people. The president also is not looking for a wider war in the Middle East.”
It comes after the US and UK struck 36 Houthi targets in Yemen, just hours after the US conducted retaliatory airstrikes on 85 sites in Iraq and Syria due to the killing of three American soldiers in Jordan.
Saturday’s strikes are a further escalation of tensions in the Middle East as the US ramps up its action against Iranian-backed militias and groups.
US refuses to rule out strikes on Iran
Washington has refused to rule out airstrikes inside Iran and said the US was “determined” to respond forcefully to attacks on troops.
Asked whether the US had ruled out strikes inside Iran, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said he wouldn’t get into what’s “on and off the table”.
“I’m not going to get into what we’ve ruled in and ruled out from the point of view of military action,” Mr Sullivan told NBC news.
“What I will say is that the president is determined to respond forcefully to attacks on our people. The president also is not looking for a wider war in the Middle East.”
The Independent view: The ‘forever war’ in the Middle East will go on until Palestinians have their own state
When British planes joined American airstrikes on the Houthis in Yemen, voices were raised in the UK warning against “escalation” of the Gaza conflict to a wider war in the Middle East. There were similar voices on the pro-Palestinian march in London today, warning that the US airstrikes against allegedly Iranian-backed targets in Iraq and Syria risk a wider war.
In one sense, these warnings are misconceived, in that it was the Houthis, formally known as Ansar Allah or “Supporters of God”, who were engaged in escalation, using drones and missiles to attack international shipping in the Red Sea in solidarity with the Palestinians of Gaza. And it was Iranian-supported militia who “escalated” a conflict that otherwise did not exist when they attacked US forces in Jordan, killing three soldiers.
Read more from The Independent editorial:
Baghdad says US strikes violation of Iraq’s sovereignty
Iraq’s military spokesperson said the airstrikes conducted by the US “constitute a violation of Iraqi sovereignty” and warned of severe implications.
It undermines “the efforts of the Iraqi government, and pose a threat that could lead Iraq and the region into dire consequences”.
“The outcomes will have severe implications on the security and stability in Iraq and the surrounding region.”
ICYMI: US launches airstrikes against Iranian forces and allied militias in Iraq and Syria
The US launched airstrikes against Iranian forces and allied militias in Iraq and Syria on Friday as it began its retaliation for a drone attack that killed three US soldiers in Jordan last week.
Dozens of strikes launched by long-range bombers flown from the US targeted Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force and affiliated militia groups just hours after President Joe Biden received the remains of the three service members at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
Mr Biden said in a statement that he had ordered US military forces to strike at “facilities that the IRGC and affiliated militia use to attack US forces.”
“Our response began today. It will continue at times and places of our choosing. The United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. But let all those who might seek to do us harm know this: If you harm an American, we will respond,” Mr Biden said.
Read more from The Independent here:
Houthis have fired on commercial and military ships almost 40 times since November
In the Red Sea, the Houthis have fired on commercial and military ships almost 40 times since November. In the latest attack, they fired a ballistic missile at a Liberian-flagged container ship on Thursday, U.S. defense officials said.
The attack happened west of Hodeida, a port city in Yemen long held by the rebels, said the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a British military group overseeing Mideast waterways. It said the crew and the vessel were safe and the blast came far off the vessel’s starboard side.
The US defense officials identified the targeted container ship as the Koi, a Bermuda-owned vessel. Its management could not be immediately reached for comment. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters. The Houthis did not claim responsibility for the assault.
US and UK says Yemen strikes are intended to ‘disrupt’ Houthi
“These precision strikes are intended to disrupt and degrade the capabilities that the Houthis use to threaten global trade, and the lives of innocent mariners, and are in response to a series of illegal, dangerous, and destabilizing Houthi actions since previous coalition strikes on January 11 and 22, 2024,” a statement from the US, UK and other countries supporting the strikes said.
Today’s strike specifically targeted sites associated with the Houthis’ deeply buried weapons storage facilities, missile systems and launchers, air defense systems and radars.”
Iran says US strikes ‘strategic mistake'
Iran has called US air strikes on Iraq and Syria a “strategic mistake” after 85 targets were hit across the region on Friday.
A spokesman for Iraq’s prime minister said the strikes were a “violation” of his country’s sovereignty and that they would impact “the security and stability of Iraq and the region”.
Syria added that the US “occupation” of Syrian territory “cannot continue”.
Iraqi militia official hints at de escalation
An official from an Iranian-backed militia hinted at the desire to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East after the US launched retaliatory strikes in Iraq and Syria following the death of three American soldiers.
Hussein al-Mosawi, a spokesperson for Harakat al-Nujaba, one of the main Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, told The Associated Press that, “we do not wish to escalate or widen regional tensions.”
Mr Mosawi said that the targeted sites the US was striking in Iraq were “devoid of fighters and military personnel” but that “every action elicits a reaction.”
What jets were used in the latest Yemen strike?
The US and Britain jointly struck 36 Houthi targets across 13 locations in Yemen on Saturday in retaliation against the ongoing onslaught in the Red Sea.
The US deployed F/A-18 fighter jets from the USS Dwight D Eisenhower aircraft carrier, while the British military extended their Typhoon FGR4 fighter aircraft.
The navy destroyers USS Gravely and the USS Carney fired additional Tomahawk missiles from the Red Sea, the authorities said.
US jets takes off to strike Houthis in Yemen
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMib2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3Mvd29ybGQvbWlkZGxlLWVhc3QvaXJhbi1zdHJpa2VzLWJpZGVuLXN5cmlhLWpvcmRhbi11cGRhdGVzLWxpdmUtYjI0OTAyNTIuaHRtbNIBAA?oc=5
2024-02-04 14:40:29Z
CBMib2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3Mvd29ybGQvbWlkZGxlLWVhc3QvaXJhbi1zdHJpa2VzLWJpZGVuLXN5cmlhLWpvcmRhbi11cGRhdGVzLWxpdmUtYjI0OTAyNTIuaHRtbNIBAA
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar