Three United States personnel were killed and 34 injured in a drone strike in Jordan carried out by Iranian proxies operating in the region at the weekend, Reuters reported.
Although analysts say the incident does not necessarily signal that the conflict is ‘spiralling out of control’, the fatal attack marks a dangerous escalation in violence with the US expected to respond heavy-handedly against Iran-backed groups based in Syria and Iraq.
Simultaneously, the US is continuing its airstrikes against Iran-backed Houthis in the Yemen. The Houthis have been attacking cargo ships on key trade routes to the West since 7 October, in solidarity with Hamas and in protest at Israel’s ongoing bombardment of the Gaza strip.
On Saturday, Houthi rebels fired on a US warship off the coast of Yemen. Though the missile was intercepted, the attempt was the first of its kind targeting an American military vessel.
In an official statement after news of the losses suffered by the US forces in Jordan, President Joe Biden warned, “We will hold all those responsible to account at a time and in a manner of our choosing.” The US Defence Secretary reinforced this with similar wording: “We will respond at a time and place of our choosing.”
The Republicans issued a seemingly more hardline stance, demanding a “major reset of our Middle East policy”, and Senate leader Mitch McConnell characterised the current responses of the US as “hesitation and half-measures” that only serve to embolden Iran.