US Ready to Take Action Over Asad Airbase Attack if Iraq Fails to Respond - State Dept

© AP Photo / Nasser NasserThis aerial photo taken from a helicopter shows Ain al-Asad air base in the western Anbar desert, Iraq, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019.<img alt="This aerial photo taken from a helicopter shows Ain al-Asad air base in the western Anbar desert, Iraq, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019. - Sputnik International, 1920, 06.08.2024" src="https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/107797/18/1077971866_0:169:3043:1880_1920x0_80_0_0_0b5a5a920f8af5104593c4851f4a9ec0.jpg" width="1920" height="1080">© AP Photo / Nasser NasserSubscribeWASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States expects Iraq to take action against those responsible for the attack on Al Asad Airbase, but it is prepared to take its own measures if Baghdad does not respond appropriately, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said."When actions happen on Iraqi soil, we look first to the government of Iraq to take action," Miller said on Tuesday, adding that the US troops are in the country at the invitation of Baghdad. "But as we have shown in previous cases, we won’t hesitate to defend our troops and to take our own accountability measures or our own steps to hold terrorist groups accountable if we don’t see appropriate actions from the government of Iraq." Five US troops and two US contractors were injured in a https://sputnikglobe.com/20240805/us-personnel-injured-in-suspected-rocket-attack-on-al-asad-airbase-in-iraq---pentagon-1119651565.html
 on Al Asad Airbase in Iraq earlier this week but they are all in stable condition, a US defense official said in a statement to Sputnik on Tuesday. A post-strike assessment of the rocket attack is still ongoing, the official added. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant on Tuesday called the attack on the US airbase in Iraq, where US troops were stationed, a "dangerous escalation," blaming Iran and its allied Shiite militia, the Pentagon said in a statement.

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