DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,
The US army says three killed, a minimum of 25 others injured within the assault on US forces in northeastern Jordan.
Three US service members have been killed and “many” others wounded throughout an unmanned aerial drone assault on US forces stationed in northeastern Jordan close to the Syrian border, President Joe Biden has mentioned, blaming Iran-backed teams for the assault.
America army mentioned in a press release that a minimum of 25 individuals have been injured.
“Whereas we’re nonetheless gathering the information of this assault, we all know it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant teams working in Syria and Iraq,” Biden mentioned in a press release on Sunday.
Biden mentioned the US “will maintain all these accountable to account at a time and in a fashion [of] our selecting.”
No less than 34 personnel have been being evaluated for potential traumatic mind damage, a US official advised Reuters, talking on situation of anonymity. Two completely different officers mentioned some wounded US forces have been medically evacuated from the bottom for additional remedy.
Jordanian state tv quoted Muhannad Mubaidin, a spokesperson for Jordan’s authorities, as saying the assault occurred exterior of the dominion throughout the border in Syria.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of hardline Iran-backed militant teams, claimed assaults on three bases, together with one on the Jordan-Syria border.
The deaths are the primary fatalities of US troops within the Center East since Israel’s battle on Gaza started on October 7.
The assault comes amid hovering tensions within the area, the place Israel continues its battle on Gaza in response to an assault by the Palestinian group Hamas in southern Israel that killed a minimum of 1,139 individuals, in response to Israeli authorities.
Israel’s subsequent assault on Gaza has killed greater than 26,400 individuals, in response to Palestinian officers within the besieged territory.
‘We are actually in a regional battle’
Fears have grown about the potential for a regional conflagration amid assaults from Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Purple Sea transport and near-daily rounds of cross-border hearth between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.
In latest weeks, Iran-backed armed teams have intensified their assaults on US army bases in Iraq and neighbouring Syria in response to the Israeli army marketing campaign within the Gaza Strip.
Reporting from Tehran, Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar mentioned there have been greater than 100 assaults on US bases within the Center East since Israel launched its assault on Gaza.
“Iran’s place thus far … has been fairly clear. They are saying that these assaults will not be carried out and deliberate by Iran. They are saying that Iran has allies throughout the area. Nevertheless, these allies additionally make selections based mostly on their very own selections,” he mentioned.
“Iranians don’t want a regional escalation. The Iranian officers know a direct army confrontation with Israel additionally means a battle with the US which could possibly be a lethal one for Iran.
“So, Iran thus far has averted direct army confrontation with Israel and it has as an alternative requested its allies to behave. Iran’s response has been by means of its allies like Yemen’s Houthis, Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and plenty of different teams in Syria and Iraq.”
However Colin Clark, senior analysis fellow on the Soufan Group advised Al Jazeera that these assaults have proved that “we are actually in a regional battle.”
“There isn’t a denying that. US troops have been killed and the US will reply forcefully whether or not that’s in Iran correct or in opposition to the Iranian proxies within the numerous nations the place they function,” he mentioned.
“Iran can select to distance itself as a lot because it needs nevertheless it funds, trains and equips these teams….The Biden administration might be below immense stress to indicate the US just isn’t going to sit down again and watch its troops being killed by these Iranian-backed teams,” he added.
“The query now turns into what form this response will take.”
