Iran–United States relations

Unveiling the aftermath of weekend airstrikes

The U.S. military launched retaliatory air strikes against Iranian forces and Tehran-backed militia groups in both Iraq and Syria on Friday, following a recent drone attack that killed three American soldiers at a remote base in Jordan.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Feb. 2 that his country will not start a war, but it will "respond strongly" to anyone who bullies it amid remarks by U.S. officials on attack plans on Iranian sites in the Middle East.

The Americans claim that the attack was carried out by militants supported by Iran.
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US and Iranian efforts to prevent a direct confrontation have been complicated by the attack of a pro-Iranian group which killed three American soldiers and injured many more in Jordan on Sunday. President Joe Biden declared that the US response will be fitting, while Tehran quickly declared that it had nothing to do with the attack.

The Iranian-backed group defied a warning to stop targeting ships in the Red Sea

In a shocking turn of events, a series of explosions rattled the vicinity of the US Consulate in Erbil, Iraq, leaving a trail of destruction and claiming four lives, as reported by ABC News, citing Iraqi security sources.

Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles at positions occupied by "terrorist groups" in Syria and Iraq on late Monday, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in a statement.

State media reported that IRGC destroyed a "spy headquarters" and a "gathering of anti-Iran terrorist groups" in Syria with ballistic missiles.

The Marshall Islands-flagged tanker seized by Iran in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday has been located east of Iran's Qeshm Island, monitoring service TankerTrackers.com said in a post on social media platform X.

Iran's navy seized a ship off Oman to retaliate for the "theft" of its oil from the same tanker last year by the United States, state media said Thursday.

The United States condemned what it called an "unlawful seizure" and demanded Iran "immediately release the ship and its crew".