US president Joe Biden says he has made a decision on how to respond to the drone attack in Jordan that killed three US army reserve soldiers.
But talking to reporters before boarding the presidential helicopter, Mr Biden declined to provide more details about what that response would be.
The weekend drone strike on a US base in Jordan near the Syrian border also wounded more than 40 others.
When asked how the US response would be different from past responses to aggressions from groups backed by Iran, Mr Biden said: “We’ll see.”
The president said he did hold Iran responsible for supplying the weapons used in the attack. Mr Biden was also asked what he would say to Democratic lawmakers who are concerned about the risks of an expanding war in the Middle East and he, again, said: “We’ll see.”
“I don’t think we need a wider war in the Middle East,” Mr Biden said. “That’s not what I’m looking for.”
US officials said they are still determining which of several Iran-backed groups was responsible for the first killing of American troops in a wave of attacks against US forces in the region since the October 7th Hamas assault on Israel.
US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters travelling with Mr Biden aboard Air Force One that he would not preview the US response, but indicated it would come in phases.
“It’s very possible that what you’ll see is a tiered approach here, not just a single action, but potentially multiple actions over a period of time,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Iranian-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah, one of several groups eyed by US officials, announced on Tuesday in a statement “the suspension of military and security operations against the occupation forces in order to prevent embarrassment to the Iraqi government”.
The attacks on US forces by Iraqi militias over the past four months have placed the government of Iraqi prime minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani in an awkward position.
He was brought to power by Iranian-allied factions but has also attempted to stay in Washington’s good books and has condemned the attacks on US forces serving in Iraq as part of an international commission to fight the Islamic State.
Iraqi and US officials on Saturday opened talks aimed at winding down the commission’s presence.
On Tuesday, Mr Biden spoke to the families of the three American service members killed in Sunday’s drone attack.
Mr Kirby said the president extended his condolences and pledged full assistance to the families as they grieve.
In separate calls with the families, Mr Biden also gauged their feelings about his attendance at Friday’s dignified transfer of the fallen service members’ remains at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Friday, and “all of them supported his presence there”, Mr Kirby said.
“He was grateful for their time. He expressed to them how proud we all are of their service,” Mr Kirby said of Mr Biden’s calls with the families. “How we mourn and feel sorrow over their loss.”
Mr Kirby added: “The president will be going to the dignified transfer on Friday.”
The solemn ceremony marks the return of fallen service members to American soil as they journey to their final resting place, with silent honour guards carrying flag-draped transfer cases holding the remains from transport aircraft to military vehicles.
The Pentagon identified those killed in the attack as Sgt William Jerome Rivers (46), of Carrollton, Georgia; Spc Kennedy Ladon Sanders (24), of Waycross, Georgia; and Spc Breonna Alexsondria Moffett (23), of Savannah, Georgia.
In 2021, Mr Biden attended the dignified transfer of the remains of 13 troops killed in a suicide attack during the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Separately, Landstuhl Regional Medical Centre in Germany said it expected to receive three US service members who were injured in the drone attack, including one listed in a critical, but stable, condition.
