U.S. forces face threat as Iran vows revenge on Israel – White House
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The White House warned on Monday that U.S. troops face constant threat in Syria and Iraq as Iran threatens to respond to the attack on its consulate in Syria that killed senior commanders in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
During a virtual press briefing John Kirby, National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications, stressed the U.S. continues to support Israel in self-defense needs against public threats made by Iran, in addition to discussing preparations for possible risks to American personnel.
“Our own people, not just our troops, but our diplomatic personnel as well in Iraq and Syria, are under constant threat,” Kirby said. “We take that seriously and we take the appropriate force protection measures we need to as the threat changes to make sure that they can protect themselves.”
On Monday, during a visit to Damascus, the Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian accused the U.S. of giving Israel the green light to attack the Iranian consulate in Syria and reiterated Iran’s vows that it will retaliate.
On April 1, Israeli airstrikes targeted the Iranian consulate in Damascus, which is adjacent to the main embassy building, killing two IRGC generals and five officers.
Meanwhile, Kirby reiterated to reporters that the U.S. is not involved in any way in the attack on the Iranian consulate.
Iranian-backed militias have frequently targeted U.S. troops since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023. Likewise, Israel has targeted Iran-linked targets and weapons warehouses in Syria over the past years.
Kirby stressed the U.S. takes threats to the American people seriously and they “know that that those groups, many of the groups that conduct those kinds of attacks, are supported, funded, resourced by the IRGC.”