Iraq denies knowledge of US attacks: "Lies"
Iraq had no knowledge that the United States would attack 85 Iranian targets in Syria and Iraq on Friday night, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani's staff said in a statement seen by Reuters.
"Lies," the office writes in the statement.
Iraq says 16 people were killed and that civilians were among the dead. In addition, 25 are said to have been injured. The country condemns the US effort and thinks it threatens security and stability.
In the past, the Iraqi army has also denied that the United States informed about the attacks in advance, which the White House has claimed.
Syria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also condemns the attacks. In a statement, the ministry writes that the attacks "inflame the conflict in the Middle East in a very dangerous way", according to Al Jazeera.
Condemnation of the US also comes from Iran, whose Foreign Minister Nasser Kanani calls the operation a strategic mistake that contributes to increased tensions.
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Analysis: An extended war remains unlikely
The US's revenge attacks in Syria and Iraq were well planned and tailored to create a deafening effect - but the echo will not last long, writes Nick Paton Walsh in an analysis in CNN. He notes that the attack on 85 sites may seem extensive, but that the US used only a sliver of its capability.
Four months after the terrorist attack in Israel, it is almost "miraculous" that a wider conflict has not taken off in earnest. But the truth is that neither the US nor Iran has any interest in war, he continues.
"An extended war remains unlikely."
In Sky News' analysis, John Sparks writes that US President Joe Biden is walking a difficult balance - in several ways. He wants to deter Iran, but not start a war. He wants to silence the critical voices in Washington that he is acting for weight, without arousing too much anger in the Middle East. He wants to bomb Iranian targets, as long as they are not inside Iran.
It is a difficult balancing act. The attacks, which appear to be the start of a larger military campaign, "could very well have unintended and far-reaching consequences."
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Experts: Dangerous spiral - now a ceasefire is needed in Gaza
The Middle East had "managed without" the US's revenge attacks in Iraq and Syria, says military analyst HA Hellyer at the British think tank Royal United Services Institute to Al Jazeera.
The development is worrying and if it continues, no one knows how it will end. The key to regaining calm lies in Gaza, according to Hellyer.
- A ceasefire, I think, would really reduce tensions in the region and remove the fuel for this type of escalation.
Expert Susanne DiMaggio at the think tank Carnegie endowment for international peace agrees. She told Bloomberg that the notion that deadly attacks can be carried out by either side, without starting a dangerous spiral towards war, is a "high-risk fantasy".
- A diplomatic settlement is really needed, she says.
Late last night, the United States said it had struck 85 different Iranian targets in Syria and Iraq in response to Sunday's drone strike in Jordan that killed three American soldiers.
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