The United States (U.S.) believed that an umbrella group of different militants called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq was behind the drone attack in Jordan that killed three Americans last Sunday, as stated by the White House on Jan. 31, 2024.

U.S. President Joe Biden announced that he already decided what the response would be, but did not elaborate on specific details.

In a White House press briefing, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby also said that "we do not want a war with Iran."

Aerial drone attack on Jan. 28, 2024

Three U.S. service members were killed and at least 34 other service members were wounded in the attack in northeast Jordan near the Syrian border, involving an unmanned aerial drone, according to a U.S. Central Command statement on Jan. 28, 2024.

The attack occurred at the logistics support base located at Tower 22 of the Jordanian Defense Network, where approximately 350 U.S. Army and Air Force personnel were deployed.

In a daily press briefing on Jan. 31, 2024, Kirby said, “We believe that the attack in Jordan was planned, resourced and facilitated by an umbrella group called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which contains multiple groups including Kata’ib Hezbollah.”

“This certainly has the earmarks of the kinds of things that Kata’ib Hezbollah does,” Kirby added. "But again, for our purposes today...the attribution that that our intelligence community is comfortable with is that this was done by the umbrella group called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq."

Al-Muqawama al-Islamiyah fi al-Iraq, translated as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, has claimed responsibility for the attack, as reported by BBC.

U.S. does not want a war with Iran

A member of the press referred to a statement made by the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations, who said Iran would: "Decisively respond to any attack on the country, its interests, and nationals under any pretext."

They asked if this represented "tacit acknowledgement" by Iran that wider conflict in the Middle East could be avoided if the U.S. response to the drone attack showed "restraint."

Kirby replied:

"Well, the folks that need to show restraint are these groups that Iran backs. But nevertheless, I would just say a couple of things.

First of all, as we’ve said many times, we don’t seek a war with Iran. We’re not looking for a broader conflict. We’re not looking for a war with Iran. That’s number one."

He added that the U.S. has obligations to the troops and facilities in the region, and it needs to hold those who are responsible properly accountable.

Biden said he did not wish a broader conflict in the Middle East

On Jan. 30, 2024, Biden had told reporters that he had made a decision about the U.S.'s response to the drone strike, but declined to provide further details.

He also emphasised that he did not wish for a broader conflict in the Middle East, which has intensified in recent months since the Israel-Hamas conflict in October 2023.

Iran denied playing any role in the drone attack.

However, a day prior to the press briefing, CNN reported that the group that was later named by Kirby, Kata’ib Hezbollah, announced it would stop carrying out offensive actions against U.S. forces in the region.

In a statement, it said: "We are announcing the suspension of military and security operations against the occupation forces (US troops) – in order to prevent embarrassment to the Iraqi government."

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Top image via C-SPAN