2024-02-02T14:16:31+00:00
A-
A
A+
/ Sky News quoted American sources on Friday as saying that American attacks in the Middle East will start within hours.
The US raids are likely to target several areas in Iraq and Syria, according to the channel.
For his part, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi warned on Friday, in a stern tone, against any possible American attack in response to a drone strike that killed three American soldiers in Jordan. While he indicated that his country would respond to any attack it was subjected to by “bullies,” he stressed that his country’s forces did not pose a threat to anyone.
“We have said many times that we will not start any war, but if a country or an oppressive power wants to bully us, we will respond forcefully to anyone who bullies us,” Raisi was quoted as saying by the Iranian news agency IRNA during a visit to Hormozgan province in southern Iran.
He added: “Iran’s military power in the region does not pose a threat to any country, but rather is a source of security and the countries of the region can rely on this power.”
The Iranian president continued: “Iran’s defensive power has given the country a deterrent force.”
The killing of the American servicemen in a drone attack on a base in Jordan on Sunday represents the first American military losses from hostile fire in the region since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas on October 7.
US President Joe Biden blamed the attack on “Iran-backed extremist armed groups.”
Biden said he had outlined the nature of the US response to the attack, but did not announce details of the plans or timing of the response, while stressing that he was not seeking a wider war in the Middle East.
The White House indicated that “multiple measures” could be taken in response to the attack.
Biden is scheduled to oversee the return of the bodies of the three soldiers to the United States on Friday, where they will be received with military honors.
Iran has denied any connection to the attack and said it is not seeking to “expand” the conflict in the Middle East.
Regional tensions have escalated amid the war between Israel and Hamas, with Iranian-backed factions in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen launching attacks on Israeli and US interests.