Iran could “take the gloves off and turn loose the surrogate forces with all of their might” with US troops in the firing line, an expert has warned, amid fears the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza could widen into a full Middle East conflict.
Iranian-backed militias from proxy groups, including Houthi militants, have carried out dozens of attacks on US bases in Iraq and Syria since the start of the Israel-Hamas war nearly three months ago.
Joe Biden and the White House are on high alert with American service personnel increasingly finding themselves in a dangerous firing line at a time with US and allied naval assets on high alert after multiple drone attacks.
Israel, despite pressure from Washington to tone down the intensity of its war with Hamas in Gaza, is continuing to warn the conflict could last for several months, sparking fears the situation could spiral out of control and drag the US further in.
Christopher O’Leary, a former director of hostage recovery for the US government, said while the regional situation had not yet reached worst case scenarios, he warned the possibility of a sharp deterioration is not far away.
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He told CNN News Central: “The Israel-Hamas war is part of the grander scheme from the axis of resistance, the Iran-controlled strategy to get regional influence and power through groups, surrogate groups like Hamas, like Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, Kataib Hezbollah, and the Houthis.”
“So, although there have been sustained attacks, they have been measured, to a point, including the Houthi attacks in ships on the Red Sea.
“But these are warnings of what could possibly come. If Iran actually takes the gloves off and turns loose the surrogate forces with all of their might, we have a real regional problem, yes, against the US troops stationed in Iraq and Syria.”
Earlier this week, Biden gave the go-ahead for the US military to carry out retaliatory airstrikes against Iran-backed militia groups after soldiers were injured in a drone attack in northern Iraq.
National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson confirmed one of the soldiers three soldiers hurt had experienced critical injuries during the attack.
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The retaliatory strikes were carried out at about 4.45am on Tuesday in Iraq – less than 13 hours after the troops were attacked. Local outlets reported at least one person died and 24 were injured.
US Central Command said the raid on the three sites, “destroyed the targeted facilities and likely killed a number of Kataib Hezbollah militants.”
Watson said: “The President places no higher priority than the protection of American personnel serving in harm’s way.
“The United States will act at a time and in a manner of our choosing should these attacks continue.”
