The US
has begun
its retaliatory
strikes in the Middle East
after three U.S.
service members were killed
and dozens of others
injured in a drone attack earlier
this week.
We're going to get straight
to CNN's Oren Liebermann.
He is over at the Pentagon.
Oren, what do we know about thes
and where and when they are taki
Abby, as we understand it,
these strikes are now taking pla
according to U.S.
officials in both Iraq and Syria
five days after a U.S.
drone strike killed I'm sorry,
a drone strike killed three U.S.
service members
in Jordan,
the first time we have seen
a loss of life
as a result of enemy attacks
since the beginning of the Gaza
President Joe
Biden, Defense
Secretary Lloyd Austin
had both promised a powerful U.S
response,
one that might not be measured i
but perhaps in days.
And again, according to two U.S.
officials,
we are now seeing that response
in both Iraq and Syria.
It is worth pointing out that th
has certainly carried out
strikes in Iraq and Syria
over the course of the past
couple of months.
But this is the first time
we're seeing them do them
both simultaneously,
striking targets in Iraq and Syr
The U.S.
has made it
clear
that coming from the defense sec
and the president,
that they ultimately hold
Iran responsible
for the drone attack
that killed three U.S.
service members and wounded scor
Iran arms, supplies, trains and
weaponry to the Iranian backed m
that the U.S.
accuses of carrying out the stri
So likely as we learn
more about the targeting.
We will learn more about how the
went after these Iranian backed
in trying to send a message
not only to the militias themsel
that the attacks have to stop,
but also to Iran
to stop arming
and training these militias here
So we do certainly expect
more information on the strikes
as the evening here goes on.
But important to note
at this point that two U.S.
officials tell us again that U.S
has begun striking Iraq and Syri
Now, it's worth
noting also, Abbie,
that this
might not be a one day operation
We might expect this to continue
U.S.
officials have said
the response
would be multi-tiered or multi-p
So that means it could go
after not only, for example, fac
but also leadership,
high value targets across Iraq a
and a number of other targets,
very much
expecting a more powerful series
of strikes and actions
than we've seen over the course
of the past few months in Iraq a
Yeah,
and this is
a very significant development.
After months of attacks,
more than 160 directed at U.S.
assets in the region.
Oren,
how do the these strikes
and the geography of it
in Iraq and Syria,
what does it tell us about
where the United States believes
these attacks are coming from?
Well, the U.S.
has seen attacks from both milit
in Iraq and Syria,
and that doesn't even get into H
attacks from the Iran backed reb
in Yemen against international
shipping and against U.S. warshi
But the U.S.
has ultimately held Iran respons
Still, though,
it was up to the administration
whether they wanted to carry out
strikes directly in Iran.
But that was always considered u
because the U.S.
has still tried to walk
this fine line
between sending a more powerful
to these militias,
but trying
not to start a regional war with
U.S. officials also believe that Iran
interested in a regional war.
So it is a bit of a question of
how do you manage to thread that
And now I suspect over the cours
of the next few hours,
we'll see
what sort of target sets
and how broad these operations
are to get a sense
of of how Biden and the administ
made that decision. Who do they
Where do they go after them, and
what extent do they go after the
on a series of strikes
and operations
that may very well
last more than just this evening
All right, Oren Liebermann,
stay close with us as this devel
Thanks for that.
We'll go now to CNN's
international diplomatic
editor Nic Robertson, who is in
Nic, you've been covering
this region
for decades,
this particular conflict in Gaza
which is at the heart of a lot o
for the last several months.
Tell us about the significance
of the United States
making the decision to retaliate
and choosing targets in
both Iraq and in Syria?
Well, I think it
will certainly be viewed
by the government
here in Israel
as as absolutely necessary
and certainly understood in this
that unless you hit back
hard, then your enemy, in this c
the Iran Iran by proxy in Iraq,
doesn't get the message. Clearly
So I think the expectation in th
would be
if the United States
is going to have a meaningful im
and really send a message
that killing U.S.
soldiers is
is not an option in the future,
then it has to be big and bold a
And as Oren says,
we don't know how far the admini
is going to take this.
I think also people
will look in this region
and say,
okay, on the one hand,
we hear from the Iranian preside
saying that he's not really look
for a direction, frustration
with the United States,
and neither is the United States
looking to that confrontation wi
However,
most people in this region
will say we're just hold on a mi
Iran actually is already waging
against the United States
regional interests,
its economic interests,
its military interests,
which are there ostensibly to st
gaining a foothold again
in Syria and in Iraq.
And it is Iran is waging a war,
therefore, against against
United States interests.
So, albeit through its proxies,
Iran's hand is very, very big in
supplying the weaponry
that was used in the strike.
Taylor, 22, in Jordan,
or whether it's supplying and su
groups like Palestinian Islamic
Jihad and Hamas in Gaza or Hezbo
in Lebanon
to the north of here and and oth
in Syria and Iraq
and the Houthis as well.
So I think the perception here
would be that the Biden administ
is going to have an effect.
It needs to hit hard.
But of course, it is
that delicate balance
because events can be misinterpr
You know, on one hand,
we're given to believe
by one of the Iranian
backed proxies in Iraq
that they may have overreached
in this strike
last week,
that it wasn't intended to kill
service personnel.
Well, they did.
And that's how escalation happen
And that's how
people,
particularly when
you're dealing with these militi
that have a mind of their own,
they may have the weapons from I
but they have
also have a mind of their own
that that they can overstepped t
So
I think tonight the region will
for the United States
to deliver a decisive message
and perhaps in the coming days.
But also
that concern is obviously writ l
They don't want to see an escala
but take a stand. And Jordan sho
Jordan has been
not in this fight until now.
And let's say it's not at the mo
but Iran's proxies decided to pi
target inside of Jordan.
I think most Jordanians
were sort of unaware
that the
government hosts a contingent of
forces
so close to the border with with
It's not a secret,
but it's just not discussed much
And the Jordanian approach to th
when it first happened
was to try to say
that it actually happened in Syr
Then they don't like this.
They don't want this
this these escalations
to be visited upon them.
They have a delicate political s
their country,
which is affected by what's happ
here. And Israel is all interconnected
But again, it comes back to that
Iran is prosecuting a war of sor
against the United States
just through proxies, not direct
Yeah,
And as the defense secretary
said this week,
they can deny it all
they want,
but without their backing,
these attacks would not happen.
Nick, stick around for us
as we continue to follow this
breaking news story.
I want to go to the White House
now where M.J.
Lee is standing by for us. M.J.
Biden earlier
this week said that
he had decided
what to do
in response to this deadly attac
troops.
Now that the strikes have,
in fact,
begun, is the White House
saying anything at this hour?
The White House
so far has not confirmed anythin
about these strikes
that my colleagues have reported
on out of the Pentagon.
Abbi, it is hard to overstate
just what a consequential decisi
making process
this has been for the president
following the deaths of those th
service members
following that drone
strike in Jordan last week.
And you'll recall
that the president immediately
convened his national security t
and was right away
presented with a range of option
And I think the fact
that we are seeing these strikes
almost a week later
sort of speaks
to some of the very complicated
considering options
and the deliberations that have
how exactly the U.S.
was going to retaliate.
We know that there are two
big considerations that the pres
has been weighing.
One, which
Nick and Warren
both alluded
to, is making sure
that this was a retaliation and
that were taking into account
the gravity of the situation.
Again, the deaths of these three
service members
showing real force
and showing
the possibility
for real deterrence,
which
so far obviously has not been su
Now, and second,
as Nick was talking about,
is wanting to prevent a bigger w
from being created.
The president has talked about t
over and over again. Different U
and White House
officials have been clear from d
one that the last thing that the
is a bigger regional conflict.
And, you know, one of the big qu
heading into this moment has bee
whether the U.S.
would be willing to strike asset
inside Iran.
And we have actually gotten
some clear
and strong indications from offi
though not definitive,
that that probably was not
going to be on the table
because of how escalatory it wou
You know, when I asked in the White House
briefing room,
is that option on the table?
The response that I have gotten
we are not looking for a war wit
Now, again, this is just the fir
Officials have been really clear
that what we see on day
one is not going to be everythin
that there is going to be sort
of multiple stages
and multiple iterations
of these strikes to come.
So we'll see sort of what comes
and what more
we can learn about these strikes
and what sort of the next steps
are going to be.
But again, a very consequential
for the president,
very much with these three U.S.
service members in mind.
Of course,
the president has just returned
from that dignified transfer pro
that was incredibly solemn.
And just clarify for everyone
watching around the country, sor
the sacrifice that goes into eve
service member
that is serving abroad,
the dangers that they confront.
And that has been really top of
for the president this week.