US will do ‘what’s necessary’ to defend itself after Iraq rocket attack, says Pentagon chief
- Lloyd Austin said the US is still ‘developing intelligence’ on who was behind the attack
- The March 3 assault saw around 10 rockets slam into the sprawling Ain al-Assad military base in Iraq’s western desert
The United States will “do what’s necessary” to defend itself, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said on Sunday, days after rockets hit an Iraqi base hosting coalition troops, further escalating US-Iran tensions on Iraqi soil.
US defence secretary Austin told ABC News that the US is still “developing intelligence” on who was behind the attack, which saw around 10 rockets slam into the sprawling Ain al-Assad military base in Iraq’s western desert on March 3.
No US service members were injured, but an American civilian contractor suffered a cardiac episode while sheltering and died soon after, the Pentagon has said.
Austin said Washington was urging Iraqi authorities to move quickly to investigate who was behind the attack, the fourth in recent weeks targeting locations where US forces operate.
“We want to make sure that again, we understand who’s responsible for this. The message to those who would carry out such an attack is, you know, expect us to do what’s necessary to defend ourselves,” he said on ABC News’ This Week.
“We’ll strike if that’s what we think we need to do at a time and place of our own choosing.”