Biden says he has already decided his response to the death of 3 US soldiers in Jordan

Washington—

US President Joe Biden on Tuesday said he has decided how to respond to the death of three US soldiers in a drone strike in Jordan on Sunday, which his administration has blamed on Iranian-backed militia groups. He would not want to escalate the war. Middle East, but did not go into specific details.

US officials said they had not yet determined which of several Iran-backed groups was responsible for the deaths. Biden is scheduled to attend a ceremony on Friday to mark the return of fallen soldiers to American soil, and when asked by reporters if he had decided on a response, he responded in the affirmative, while indicating that he aims for further escalation. Had to be avoided.

“I don’t think we need a broader war in the Middle East,” Biden said at the White House before leaving on a fundraising trip to Florida. “This is not what I’m looking for.”

It was not immediately clear whether Biden meant he had decided on a specific retaliation plan. A federal official told The Associated Press that the Pentagon continues to evaluate options for responding to the attack in Jordan.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters traveling with Biden on Air Force One that he would not release the US response, but said it would be carried out in phases.

“It’s very possible that what you’re seeing here is a phased approach, not one action, but potentially multiple actions over a period of time,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Iraqi militia Kata’ib Hezbollah – one of several groups targeted by the United States – announced in a statement on Tuesday that it was “suspending military and security operations against the occupation forces to avoid causing trouble to the Iraqi government.” Has been given.”

Attacks on US forces by Iraqi militias over the past four months have put the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani in an awkward position. Sudanese was brought to power by Iran-allied factions, but has also tried to maintain good relations with Washington and attacks on US forces deployed in Iraq as part of an international commission to combat the Islamic State group. Have condemned. Iraqi and US officials began talks on Saturday aimed at reducing the commission’s presence.

Kirby said Biden spoke to the soldiers’ families Tuesday morning and expressed his condolences, and promised to provide full assistance to the families in their grief.

In separate calls with the families, Kirby said, Biden also weighed their feelings about his attendance at the transfer of the remains of fallen soldiers at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Friday, and “all of them appreciated his presence there.” Supported.”

“He thanked them for their time. He told them how proud we all are of their service,” Kirby said of Biden’s call with family members. “How we mourn and feel your loss.”

“The president will attend the ceremony on Friday,” Kirby said.

The ceremony represents the return of fallen service members to American soil on their way to their final resting place, with honor guards carrying flag-draped caskets from transport planes to military vehicles.

The Pentagon identified the soldiers killed in the attack as Sergeant William Jerome Rivers, 46, of Carrollton, Georgia; Specialist Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 24, of Waycross, Georgia, and Specialist Breonna Alexandria Moffett, 23, originally from Savannah, Georgia. The U.S. Army Reserve announced Tuesday that it has posthumously promoted Sanders and Moffett to the rank of sergeant.

A US military official said a total of 166 attacks have been carried out against US military facilities since October 18, including 67 in Iraq, 98 in Syria and now one in Jordan. Al Asad base in western Iraq was hit again by rocket attack on Tuesday, but no damage or injuries were reported in that incident, according to a US military official. The three soldiers killed in the attack in Jordan were the first deaths of US military personnel in the Middle East since the war between Israel and Hamas began. A contractor also died of a heart attack following the attack on Assad in December.

Separately, Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany said it was expecting three US soldiers injured in the drone strike, one of them in critical but stable condition. The Pentagon said at least 40 soldiers were injured, along with the three who died.

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Madani reported from Jupiter, Florida. Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor and Tara Cope in Washington and Abby Sewell in Beirut contributed to this report.