The US has ordered a series of reprisal strikes to be launched over more than one day against an Iranian-backed militia, the US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, has said.
Austin said all drones in the region attacking the US were of Iranian origin. The retaliatory strikes are expected to hit militia in Syria and possibly Iraq, though Austin did not specify the timing or precise location.
“We will have a multi-tier response and we have the ability to respond a number of times depending on the situation,” he said at a Pentagon press conference on Thursday. “We look to hold the people responsible for this accountable and we also seek to take away capability as we go forward.”
Austin insisted that a lot of thought in Washington had gone into ensuring that the US response did not trigger a major escalation.
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Austin stressed the US was not at war with Iran and Washington did not know if Tehran was aware of the specific drone strikes on Sunday mounted by what he described as the axis of resistance.
He sidestepped claims that US delays in responding meant senior Iranian military advisers had left Syria for Iran where they were less likely to face a US attack.
Asked about the announcement by the Iranian-backed militia Kata’ib Hezbollah that it was suspending its attacks on US bases inside Iraq, he said: “We always listen to what people are saying, and we also watch what they do.
The Emirati-based newspaper, the National, reported on Thursday that a senior Iranian commander had travelled to Baghdad and met Tehran-backed militants to urge an immediate de-escalation.
“It is costing countries and companies a significant amount of money,” he added, calling on Iran to cease supplying Houthis with advanced weapons to attack commercial shipping.
No evidence existed as yet that China was putting pressure on Iran in turn to direct the Houthis to stop the attacks and end arms supplies, he said.
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