In response to an incident in Jordan that claimed the lives of American soldiers, the United States launched a flurry of airstrikes against sites in Iraq and Syria that support Iran.
Iraq confirmed on Saturday that 16 people, including civilians, had died on its territory, while a monitoring organization said that 18 people had died in Syria.
Amid Israel’s attack on Gaza, Washington has threatened more strikes in an apparent attempt to weaken the “axis of resistance,” which is supported by Iran. “Our response began today,” US President Joe Biden declared in reference to the atrocities that occurred over night. It will go on whenever and wherever we choose.
The world’s response to the US action was as follows:
Iran
Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nasser Kanaani stated, “The attacks are a violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria, international law, and a clear violation of the United Nations Charter.”
The attacks on Syria and Iraq last night were another bold move and another strategic blunder by the US government that will only heighten tensions and instability in the region, in addition to the US’s unwavering support for the Zionist regime’s four months of vicious and unrelenting attacks against the people of Gaza and the West Bank, as well as military assaults on Yemen and violations of the nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
“The attacks only serve to further the Zionist regime’s objectives. The US administration is becoming more and more involved in these attacks, which eclipse the crimes committed by the Zionist dictatorship in Gaza.
Iraq
The Iraqi government issued a statement stating, “This aggressive strike will put security in Iraq and the region on the brink of the abyss.” It also refuted Washington’s allegations that Baghdad was involved in the air raid coordination, calling them “false” and “aimed at misleading international public opinion.”
According to a statement from Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s office, the US-led military coalition’s presence in the area “has become a reason for threatening security and stability in Iraq and a justification for involving Iraq in regional and international conflicts.”
According to government spokesman Basim Alwadi, “Iraq reiterates its refusal to let the country be an arena for settling scores.”
The assaults “constitute a violation of Iraqi sovereignty, undermine the efforts of the Iraqi government, and pose a threat that could lead Iraq and the region into dire consequences,” according to Yahya Rasool, the spokesperson for the Iraqi military. Rasool continued, “The results will have serious ramifications for the security and stability in Iraq and the surrounding region.”
Syria
The strikes, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, contributed to Washington’s “record of violations against Syria’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the safety of its people, proving once again that it is the main source of global instability” and helped to “inflame the conflict in the Middle East in an extremely dangerous way.”
“This confirms that the United States and its military forces are involved and allied with this organization, and are working to revive it as a field arm for it both in Syria and Iraq by all dirty means,” the military said, referring to the area in eastern Syria that was the target of the American attacks. “The Syrian Arab Army is fighting the remnants of the Daesh [ISIL] terrorist organization in this area.”
“There is no other reason for the American occupation forces’ aggression this morning at dawn than to undermine the Syrian Arab Army and its allies’ capacity to combat terrorism, but the army itself.”
Iraqi Islamic Resistance
The coalition of armed organizations in Iraq that the US and Israel oppose, which had earlier this week “suspended” its attacks, claimed to have launched drones at a US base in Erbil.
Iraqi militias have also launched missile attacks against the US-occupied al-Tanf military facility in Syria and the Ain al-Assad base in western Iraq, according to Mahmoud Abdelwahed of Al Jazeera, reporting from Baghdad.
The Hamas
“We strongly denounce the US aggression against Syria and Iraq and view it as a dangerous continuation, an infringement on the two Arab countries’ sovereignty, and a threat to their security as well as the stability of the region, serving the occupation’s expansionist agenda and concealing its horrifying crimes against our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip,” a statement from Hamas said.
“We declare that stability and peace in the region will not come until Zionist aggression, crimes of genocide and ethnic cleansing against our people in the Gaza Strip, and the Zionist-Nazi occupation are stopped. The administration of US President Biden bears responsibility for the consequences of this brutal aggression against both Iraq and Syria, which adds fuel to the fire.”
The European Union
Josep Borrell, the head of EU foreign policy, said, “Everyone should try to avoid that the situation becomes explosive.”
Borrell reiterated his warning that the Middle East “is a boiler that can explode,” even if he did not specifically address the US strikes.
He mentioned the conflict in Gaza, the bloodshed at the border between Israel and Lebanon, the bombs in Syria and Iraq, and the assaults on ships in the Red Sea. “We call everyone to try to prevent an escalation because of this.”
United Kingdom
“The US and the UK remain unwavering allies. A spokesman for the British government said in a statement, “We would not comment on their operations, but we support their right to respond to attacks.”
“We have long denounced Iran’s destabilizing actions in the region, including its military, financial, and political backing of several extremist organizations.”
Poland
As he arrived in Brussels for a meeting with his EU counterparts, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski told reporters, “Iran’s proxies have played with fire for months and years, and it’s now burning them.”