A drone strike on a base in Jordan killed three US troops, with President Joe Biden blaming Iran-backed militants for the primary US navy deaths within the area because the begin of the battle between Israel and Hamas.
Iran mentioned it had nothing to do with the assault and denied US and British accusations that it supported militant teams accountable for the assault on the distant border base in northeastern Jordan, close to the borders with Iraq and Syria.
“Whereas we’re nonetheless gathering the information about this assault, we all know it was carried out by radical, Iranian-backed militant teams working in Syria and Iraq,” Biden mentioned in an announcement, vowing to “name all these accountable on the identical time to be held accountable.” and in a method of our personal selecting.”
Biden later held a second of silence in a South Carolina church banquet corridor for U.S. troops killed within the assault, promising: “We’ll reply.”
With the area already tense as combating rages in Gaza, the strike additionally raises fears of a wider battle straight involving Tehran.
To this point there was no declare of duty for the strike, however British Overseas Secretary David Cameron reiterated a name for Iran to “de-escalate within the area.”
He additionally condemned the assault “by Iran-affiliated militias” in a put up on social media platform X.
Iran denied any hyperlink to the assault, with Overseas Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani describing the allegations as “unfounded” and a “projection”.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran doesn’t welcome the enlargement of the battle within the area,” Kanani mentioned in an announcement, including that Tehran “will not be concerned within the choices of the resistance teams.”
Iran executed 4 males at daybreak on Monday after they had been convicted of spying for Israel, the judiciary web site Mizan On-line reported.
– 'Regional explosion' –
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri mentioned the assault in Jordan was “a message to the US authorities.”
“The continuation of US-Zionist aggression in opposition to Gaza dangers a regional explosion,” Abu Zuhri mentioned.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) mentioned late on Sunday that the assault had hit the distant Tower 22 logistics assist base and in addition injured 34 personnel, eight of whom needed to be evacuated.
There are roughly 350 U.S. Military and Air Pressure personnel on the base who function in assist roles, together with for the worldwide coalition in opposition to the jihadist group Islamic State, CENTCOM mentioned.
Jordanian authorities spokesman Muhannad Mubaidin condemned the assault, as did Bahrain and Egypt.
The escalating battle within the Center East poses a problem for Biden in an election 12 months.
Republican politicians shortly focused Biden for the lethal assault, together with his predecessor Donald Trump, who described the scenario as a “consequence of Joe Biden's weak spot and give up.”
U.S. and allied forces in Iraq and Syria have been the goal of greater than 150 assaults since mid-October, in line with the Pentagon, and Washington has carried out retaliatory strikes in each international locations.
Lots of the assaults on US personnel have been claimed by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a free alliance of Iran-linked armed teams that oppose US assist for Israel within the Gaza battle.
The most recent spherical of the Israeli-Hamas battle started when the Palestinian militant group carried out an unprecedented assault on October 7 that resulted in some 1,140 deaths, principally civilians, in line with an AFP tally of official figures.
Israel retaliated with a brutal navy offensive that has killed not less than 26,422 individuals in Gaza, most of them ladies and youngsters, in line with the Israeli Well being Ministry.
Anger over that marketing campaign has grown throughout the area, with violence involving Iranian-backed teams in Lebanon, Iraq and Syria, in addition to in Yemen.
There have been virtually each day firefights between Hezbollah and Israel in Lebanon. US forces are straight concerned in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
The USA and Britain have each launched assaults on Iran-backed Huthi rebels from Yemen, who’ve been attacking transport within the Pink Sea for greater than two months in assist of the Palestinians in Gaza.
