senator Lindsey Graham wants direct `hard hit' in Iran

South Carolina Senator Lindsay Graham

Several top US senators have called to `hit hard Iran after drone attacks killed three US troops and wounded many others in Jordan.  

On Sunday (January 28), a drone attack took place on the US base near the Syrian border in the northeastern region of Jordan. Three US soldiers were killed. Another 34 people were injured.  

US President Joe Biden blamed Iran-backed groups for the attack. Immediately after the attack on Sunday, Biden said, "This attack was carried out by a radical armed group supported by Iran."

Biden has also warned of a strong response to this attack. He said, there is no doubt, we will catch those responsible for the attack in time.  

However, some Republican politicians, including Senator Lindsey Graham, are not satisfied with Biden's warning. They want direct military actions on Iran.

“Hit Iran now. Hit them hard," Lindsey Graham, Senator from South Carolina wrote on X (formerly Twitter), adding that Secretary Austin’s efforts to deter aggression against the US forces in the region have failed miserably.

In another post on X he said, “I’ve long since lost confidence in the Biden national security team to deter Iran. If they do not change their policies now, more American service members in the region will pay the price."

“The only thing the Iranian regime understands is force. Until they pay a price with their infrastructure and their personnel, the attacks on U.S. troops will continue," the U.S. senator added in another X post.

Now what can happen?

It remains to be seen what happens next. President Biden pledged to hold “all those responsible to account at a time and in a manner of our choosing”.

“While we are still gathering the facts of this attack, we know it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq,” he said in a statement on Sunday.

“We had a tough day last night in the Middle East. We lost three brave souls in an attack on one of our bases,” Biden later said at a South Carolina church. After the moment of silence, he added, “and we shall respond”.

US and allied forces in Iraq and Syria have been targeted in more than 150 attacks since mid-October when Israel attacked Gaza, and the US has carried out retaliatory strikes in both countries.