2024-04-03 21:22:10
Current and former US officials fear an escalation of the conflict in the Middle East and retaliatory attacks by Iran against US forces in the region in connection with Israel’s strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, writes the New York Times, quoted by BTA.
“He [ударът по иранското консулство – бел.ред. ] will only lead to escalation by Iran and its proxy forces, which is very dangerous [за американските войски]”, the publication quoted the words of Ralph Goff, a former high-ranking official of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) who worked in the Middle East. According to him, American troops could become the target of subsequent attacks by groups in the region. Goff calls the Israeli attack ” incredibly reckless”.
A Pentagon source told the newspaper that after the Israeli attack, US forces based in southeastern Syria shot down a combat drone. A Pentagon spokesman said it was unclear whether the attack was aimed directly at US troops. According to him, if this was the case, it would be the first strike by Iran-linked groups against American troops in nearly two months. The spokesman said there were no other attacks and there were no reports of injuries or damage.
Earlier, Ali Shamkhani, a political adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, opined that the US was directly responsible for the Israeli air force strike on the Iranian consulate. At the same time, the White House said that the US was in no way involved in the Israeli strike on the Iranian diplomatic mission in the Syrian capital.