Donald Trump blames Iran for insurgents storming of U.S. embassy in Iraq
David Jackson John Fritze
USA TODA
December 31, 2019
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Amid renewed tensions in the Middle East, President Donald Trump on Tuesday blamed Iran for insurgents storming the U.S. embassy in Iraq and said Tehran would be held "fully responsible" for violence targeting Americans.
"Iran killed an American contractor, wounding many," Trump tweeted. "We strongly responded, and always will. Now Iran is orchestrating an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Iraq."
Supporters of the Iraq Shiite militia, which is backed by Iran, broke into the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad earlier Tuesday, setting fire to a reception area amid tear gas and gunfire.
The embassy attack followed U.S. airstrikes on Sunday that killed 25 fighters from the Iranian-backed militia. The U.S. described those strikes as retaliation for last week’s killing of an American contractor in a rocket attack on a military base in Iraq.
In defending the U.S.-led airstrikes, Trump tweeted that Iran "will be held fully responsible."
It was Trump's first public comment on Sunday's airstrikes.
As for the embassy attack, Trump said that "we expect Iraq to use its forces to protect the Embassy, and so notified!"
The president, who is spending the holidays at his resort in Palm Beach, Fla., has been largely out of sight since taking questions from reporters on Christmas Eve.
continues at usatoday.com
Oh good! Let's bomb Tehran now! War, yes! |
