Pentagon warns ‘there will be consequences’ for killing of US soldiers as Biden decides on plan

Pentagon warns ‘there will be consequences’ for strikes that killed US soldiers

White House officials are declining to identify which militant groups are believed to be responsible

The Independent

White House officials are declining to identify which militant groups are believed to be responsible

The Pentagon has announced that “there will be consequences” for the deadly drone attack on a US base in Jordan that killed three American soldiers over the weekend, just hours after President Joe Biden told reporters that he had decided on a plan to respond to the strike by Iranian-backed militias.

The Defense Department press secretary, US Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder, told reporters that the deaths of the three army soldiers and the injury to several dozen more merited a response in kind from the United States.

“Three US service members were killed, over 40 wounded,” Maj Gen Ryder said, noting that “these service members were deployed into the region to contribute to regional security and stability in support of the international coalition to ensure the lasting defeat of Isis. So there will be consequences, and I’ll just leave it at that”.

After Maj Gen Ryder was asked about a purported message on Telegram from Kata’ib Hezbollah warning its fighters to refrain from attacking US bases or personnel, even in response to an American strike, he replied that the Pentagon was aware of the alleged message but declined to elaborate further.

“We’ve seen those reports. I don’t have a specific comment to provide other than actions speak louder than words,” he said.

Joe Biden speaks to the media at the White House on Tuesday (AP)

The Pentagon spokesperson told reporters he would not “get into any details” about what form the response to the Sunday attack could take, although he noted that both Mr Biden and defense secretary Lloyd Austin have both promised that the US would response “in a time [and] in a manner of our choosing”.

US officials have posited that the drone escaped air defence systems because it was mistaken for a separate, US-owned aircraft that was returning to the base…