The U.S Department of Defense said on Thursday that an attack on an Iraqi base killed two U.S. troops and was carried out by Iranian-backed militia groups. The military is waiting for Trump to decide how to respond.
“Let me be clear: The United States will not tolerate attacks against our people, our interests or our allies,” Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper said at the Pentagon. “All options are on the table as we work with our partners to bring the perpetrators to justice and maintain deterrence.”
Esper added that the U.S. will take any action necessary to protect our forces in Iraq.
“You don’t get to shoot at our bases, and kill and wound Americans and get away with it,” he said.
Esper and Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that about 30 rockets were launched Wednesday night at Camp Taji, north of Baghdad, and 12 to 18 hit, killing two American service members and one British service member. Several others were injured.
Milley said they had good confidence that it was Shia militia groups who launched the attack, as Iraqi’s had captured a truck modified to carry rocket launchers.
In a statement Thursday, the Iran-backed militia group asked “God to bless” the attack in Taji.
See more at the Washington Post.
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