US airstrikes live – Iraq warns of ‘dire consequences’ as 85 Iranian targets hit

Sixteen people were killed, among them civilians, and 25 injured in overnight US airstrikes on pro-Iran targets in Iraq, prime minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s office said on Saturday.

In a statement, it condemned the strikes as a “new aggression against Iraq’s sovereignty” and denied that they were coordinated by the Baghdad government beforehand with Washington, calling such assertions “lies”.

The presence of the US-led military coalition in the region “has become a reason for threatening security and stability in Iraq and a justification for involving Iraq in regional and international conflicts”, the statement added.

The US Central Command said American forces struck more than 85 targets at seven locations in both Middle Eastern countries using bombers and precision munitions, just hours after president Joe Biden received the remains of the three service members.

The US strikes appeared to stop short of directly targeting Iran or senior leaders of the Revolutionary Guard Quds Force within its borders in an effort to prevent the conflict from escalating further.

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden have participated in a dignified transfer of the three soldiers killed in a drone attack in Jordan by Iran-backed militants, the White House has announced.

The bodies of the Army reserve soldiers, Sgt William Rivers, Sgt Breonna Moffett and Sgt Kennedy Sanders, were honoured after being returned to the US, on Friday

According to the White House, a flag-draped transfer case containing each soldier was removed one at a time by teams of six carriers in camouflage uniforms and white gloves who bore them from the cargo bay of a C-5 transport plane to a van.

The Bidens were joined by Defence Secretary Lloyd.Austin and Joint Chiefs Chair Charles Brown.

The Syrian defence ministry called the strikes “blatant air aggression” led to a number of civilians and soldiers being killed and others being wounded and some significant damage to public and private property.

“Occupying parts of Syrian lands by American forces cannot continue … the Syrian army affirms continuing its war against terrorism until it is eliminated and is determined to liberate the entire Syrian territories from terrorism and occupation,” the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Syria’s foreign ministry added: “What (the US) committed has served to fuel conflict in the Middle East in a very dangerous way”.

Britain called the US its “steadfast” ally on Saturday and said it supports Washington’s right to respond to attacks, after the US military launched airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against Iran-linked targets.

“The UK and US are steadfast allies. We wouldn’t comment on their operations, but we support their right to respond to attacks,” a British government spokesperson said in a statement.

“We have long condemned Iran’s destabilising activity throughout the region, including its political, financial and military support to a number of militant groups.”

The Justice Department announced Friday that it was seizing more than 500,000 barrels of internationally sanctioned Iranian fuel that officials said was illegally trafficked to provide funding for the country’s paramilitary force.

In addition, prosecutors announced criminal charges related to the sale of the crude oil to buyers in China, Russia and Syria.

Officials described the actions, which come at time of simmering tensions between the U.S. and Iran, as part of a broader effort to disrupt funding to the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force, an expeditionary unit believed to be working abroad in countries like Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen to back Iranian-allied militias.

Democratic senator John Reed said: “Iran’s proxy forces in Syria and Iraq have been dealt a significant blow, and Iranian-linked militias around the Middle East should understand that they, too, will be held accountable.

“I salute the brave US military members who carried out today’s strikes, and I support president Biden’s robust action.

These strikes, in concert with wise diplomacy, send a clear signal that the United States will continue to take appropriate action to protect our personnel and our interests.”

Donald Trump has used the deaths of three American soldiers in a drone attack on their base in Jordan to attack Joe Biden’s presidency, warning the assault by Iran-backed militia leaves the planet “on the brink of World War 3”.

Three service members were killed and another 25 injured by the attack on the Tower 22 facility near Jordan’s border with Syria over the weekend, marking a further escalation of the simmering tensions in the Middle East.