White House warns response to Jordan drone attack will not be a ‘one-off’
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America’s response to the drone strike that killed three of its soldiers in Jordan will not be a “one-off”, the White House has warned.
On Wednesday, John Kirby, the National Security Council spokesman, said US intelligence believed Islamic Resistance in Iraq – an umbrella group of Iran-backed militias – was behind the deadly attack.
Mr Kirby said Joe Biden “believes that it is important to respond in an appropriate way” and was continuing to consider options for retaliation. He added that “the first thing you see won’t be the last thing” and it “won’t be a one-off”.
The remarks suggest the US is leaning towards a wider and deeper response, after weeks on the back foot from attacks by Iranian-backed militias including the Houthis in Yemen.
The White House is reportedly discussing a more robust response to Iran in the Middle East, with observers touting a new three-pronged “Biden Doctrine” in the region.
Three US soldiers were killed and 40 injured in a drone strike at a US base in northern Jordan.
Mr Kirby dismissed a statement by Iraqi militia Kata’ib Hezbollah – considered part of the umbrella network – that said “the suspension of military and security operations against the occupation forces in order to prevent embarrassment to the Iraqi government”.
‘Not the only group attacking us’
Mr Kirby said that the group can’t be taken at face value, adding: “They’re not the only group that has been attacking us.”
Iran has denied any role in the drone attack and pledged to respond to US military action. Maj Gen Hossein Salami, an adviser to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s leader, said on Wednesday that Tehran hears the “threats coming from American officials” and added: “No threat will be left unanswered.”
Meanwhile, in the Gulf of Aden, Iranian-backed Houthis claimed responsibility for a missile attack on a commercial ship on Wednesday. According to the Pentagon, it brings the total of attacks by the Houthis on such vessels in the area to more than 30.
Pentagon officials also said that the USS Carney shot down one Houthi-fired missile headed towards the Gulf on Wednesday night and a US naval destroyer had “engaged and shot down” three Iranian drones “in its vicinity”.
The ongoing conflicts across the Middle East are forcing the Biden administration into a potential shift in its long-term strategy, according to influential voices in the US media.
The New York Times has floated the idea of the “Biden Doctrine”, a new three-pronged approach that is being discussed by administration officials. According to Thomas L Friedman, its columnist, it “could become the biggest strategic realignment in the region since the 1979 Camp David treaty”.
The three prongs
The first stage would be the US initiating a strong and resolute stand on Iran, including a robust military retaliation against Iran’s proxies who the administration believes was behind the drone attack in Jordan.
The second stage would involve an unprecedented US diplomatic initiative to promote a Palestinian state. In a major shift from existing policy, the US would officially recognise a new demilitarised Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip that would be created in a way so it could never threaten Israel.
The final part would involve an expanded US security alliance with Saudi Arabia, including the normalisation of relations between the kingdom and Israel — if the Israeli government is prepared to accept the creation of a demilitarised Palestinian state led by a transformed Palestinian Authority.
Nader Mousavizadeh, the founder of the geopolitical consulting firm Macro Advisory Partners and a former adviser to Kofi Annan when he was UN secretary general, described the emerging Biden Doctrine as “the dual reckoning strategy”.
“You strategically call Iran’s bluff and, at the same time, you embark on an unprecedented initiative to lay the groundwork for a demilitarised Palestinian state, in ways the US has never done before,” he said.
“Each track needs the other to succeed. Each track bolsters and justifies the other. Pushing back on Iran and its proxies in an enhanced and sustained manner strengthens Israel’s security and the security of our Arab allies.
“Pairing that with an authentic and bold US commitment to a Palestinian state gives us legitimacy to act against Iran and the allies we need to be most effective. It also isolates Iran militarily and politically.”
It comes as Iran’s Revolutionary Guards are reportedly scaling back the presence of their senior officers in Syria for the first time in a decade.
Sources told Reuters that Iranian commanders along with dozens of mid-ranking officers had already left the country.
It was not immediately clear how many Iranian officers had left Syria.
Unnamed sources told Reuters Iran would have to rely more on allied Shiite militiamen from neighbouring countries to maintain its foothold there.
The sources said Iran’s decision to pull back some of its top advisers from Syria partly aims to avoid getting sucked into a broader conflict in the Middle East.
They were quoted as saying Iran “won’t abandon Syria”.
