US and Iran: Since Hamas crossed the Gaza border on October 7, US forces have been repeatedly attacked in Iraq and Syria.
Iran claimed that attacks on US forces in Iraq and elsewhere in the region were the result of “wrong American policies,” including Israel’s support during the Hamas war. This comes as US forces have been targeted repeatedly in Iraq and Syria since Hamas stormed the Gaza border on October 7, killing 1,400 people and kidnapping 239 hostages. Israel has responded with a bombing campaign against the Gaza Strip, killing 8,306 people
“The attack on American bases in the region, particularly in Iraq, is the result of wrong American policies in the region, which we hope will be corrected,” Nasser Kanani, an Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson, said.
He claimed that the attacks were carried out by groups opposed to “the US presence in the region and strongly opposed to American support for the crimes of the Zionist regime (Israel).”
“You reap what you sow,” he said, urging the US to “stop” supporting Israel.
Earlier, Iran hailed Hamas’s October 7 attacks on Israel as a “success” but denied any involvement. Mohammad Bagheri, Iran’s army chief of staff, said Hamas was “prepared for an Israeli ground attack.” Some 200 protesters, including Iranian Jews, gathered at a synagogue in Tehran to demand a cease-fire and condemn the “massacre of children, women, and defenseless people.”
Iran has repeatedly warned of the war spreading to other parts of the region, while the White House has accused Tehran of “actively facilitating” attacks on US forces in the region.
Iran’s president, Ebrahim Raisi, has stated that it is the country’s “duty” to support resistance groups, but that they “are independent in their opinion, decision, and action.”
The US military announced last week that it had targeted two facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated groups. According to the news agency AFP, the US has approximately 2,500 troops in Iraq and approximately 900 in Syria.
Ratnavali