The United States will “continue” its retaliation against pro-Iranian groups in Iraq and Syria, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday, refusing to say whether strikes on Iran could be in question, writes AFP.

Jake SullivanPhoto: – / Editorial Shutterstock / Profimedia
  • “This is not the end. We intend to strike more and take more measures to continue to send a clear message that the US will respond when its forces are attacked,” he said on NBC, according to Agerpres.

The United States and Britain said they bombed dozens of targets in Yemen on Saturday in response to repeated attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels on ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The airstrikes in Yemen came a day after a series of US strikes against Iran’s elite forces and pro-Iranian armed groups in Syria and Iraq in response to the January 28 deaths of three US soldiers in Jordan.

On another ABC channel, a senior US official said the strikes had a “good effect” in terms of preventing these groups from carrying out further attacks on US forces.

In Iraq and Syria, the US struck a total of 85 targets in seven different locations, including command and intelligence centers and drone and missile storage infrastructure, according to the Pentagon.

Asked if there were any civilian casualties, he said he could not confirm that, but clarified that the targets were “completely legitimate”.

Asked if Washington had ruled out direct strikes on Iran, Sullivan told NBC: “I’m not going to say publicly here on television what is or isn’t on the table.”

“If they decide to respond directly to the United States, they will receive a swift and decisive response from us,” he said.

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