Iran issued a warning on Jan. 31 that any U.S. attack on the Islamic regime would be met with a decisive response. The threats followed accusations by President Joe Biden that Iran is linked to the recent killing of three U.S. soldiers at a military base in Jordan.
The drone attack on the military base on Jan. 28 prompted the United States to prepare for retaliatory strikes in the region. At least 40 troops were injured at Tower 22, a base in northeastern Jordan that has been a crucial stronghold for the U.S. military’s presence in neighboring Syria.
There are growing concerns, however, that a U.S. response could trigger further unrest in a region already embattled by Israel’s ongoing war with the Hamas terrorist group, as well as continued attacks on shipping in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists.
A recent attack on American forces in the waterway by Houthi militants was averted when a U.S. Navy destroyer shot down an anti-ship cruise missile launched on Jan. 30. It was the latest attack on U.S. forces patrolling the key maritime trade route, officials said.
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in New York, Amir Saeid Iravani, first issued the warnings on Jan. 30 in a briefing to Iranian journalists, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.
“The Islamic Republic would decisively respond to any attack on the [country], its interests and nationals under any pretexts,” IRNA quoted Mr. Iravani as saying. He described any possible Iranian retaliation as a “strong response,” but did not elaborate further.
Despite reports by the Qatari-funded pro-Hamas satellite TV channel Al Jazeera that messages had been exchanged between the United States and Iran over the last few days, through either direct or indirect channels, Mr. Iravani denied that such communication had taken place.
“Such messages have not been exchanged,” Mr. Iravani said.
Nonetheless, the Iranian regime admitted its awareness of the U.S. warnings of retaliation for the attack on the base in Jordan.
“Sometime[s], our enemies raise the threat and nowadays we hear some threats in between words by American officials,” said Iranian Revolutionary Guard cmdr. Gen. Hossein Salami on Jan. 31.
“We tell them that you have experienced us and we know each other. We do not leave any threat without an answer,” he said, adding that “We are not after war, but we have no fear of war,” according to IRNA.
On Saturday, a general in charge of Iran’s air defenses said they are at their highest alert. The statement stoked fears over potential air traffic disruption relating to commercial aircraft through Iran airspace.
A U.S. drone strike in 2020 that killed a top Iranian general prompted a retaliation from Iran in which 176 people died on board a Ukrainian passenger plane shot down over Iranian airspace.
Houthi Attacks Continue
Meanwhile, attacks on U.S. warships by the Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists persist in the Red Sea.
“On Jan. 30, at approximately 11:30 p.m. (Sanaa time), Iranian-backed Houthi militants fired one anti-ship cruise missile from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward the Red Sea,” according to a U.S. Central Command press release.
“The missile was successfully shot down by USS Gravely (DDG 107). There were no injuries or damage reported,” the report went on to say.
The Houthis have since claimed responsibility for the attack. According to a Jan. 31 statement by a spokesman for the terrorist group, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, the attack presented “a victory for the oppression of the Palestinian people and a response to the American–British aggression against our country.”
Saree further claimed the group fired several missiles, although this claim was rejected by U.S. Navy officials. The terrorist group is known for exaggerating claims despite its often inept execution of attacks, with missiles often crashing prematurely or otherwise failing to reach their intended targets.
A further attack on the USS Lewis B. Puller was claimed by the terrorists on Jan. 29, but without providing any evidence. The vessel serves as a floating landing base used by Navy SEALs and others. The U.S. denied that such an attack had taken place.
The Houthi terrorist group has repeatedly disrupted maritime trade in the Red Sea since November, when it began its offensive on vessels in the region. With its strategic position between the Horn of Africa and Egypt’s Suez Canal, the Red Sea serves as a major global shipping route between Asia, East Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
Despite claims that the attacks are aimed at countering Israel’s military action against Hamas in Gaza, the terrorists often target ships with no affiliation to Israel, such as a commercial vessel attacked on Jan. 26.
The missile attack on the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker—which was carrying Russian-produced naphtha, a highly flammable petroleum product—caused a fire that burned for several hours.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
