On Sunday, January 26 three rockets struck the US Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq. According to reporters, one of the rockets hit the dining area in the Embassy, and the other two landed not far from the site. Only one was minorly injured in the attack. No one has claimed the attack, however, the recent attacks on the Iraqi military base where American troops are deployed lead many to think Iranian-backed militia are responsible. Since September more than 14 attacks had been planned and executed by Iran on US personnel in Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi stated that the continuation of these attacks could “drag Iraq into becoming a battlefield”. On the other hand, he said that the Iraqi forces will “deploy, search and investigate to prevent the occurrence of another attack”.
Discussion questions:
- Do you think that it is possible that Iran is behind this attack?
- What is a possible reason for this newest attack?
- Lastly, do you think that Iraq helping the US will benefit or detriment their reputation?
I hope that tensions between Middle East and the US will continue to die down. I think that there is a possibility that Iran could be behind this attack, although there is a possibility for anything. The possible reason for this attack someone trying to express their hatred for the US. I do think that Iraq helping the US will help benefit their reputation and it will help the two countries to be more friendly.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is likely that the attacks were carried out by Iran, because the Trump administration has been pressuring Iran politically and financially recently, which would prompt them to attack them in an easy access place, such as the US Embassy in Iraq, a neighboring country. Last December, the US attacked Hezbollah, a group backed by Iran, so it makes sense that Iran would attack them back. In fact, in response to the attack on Hezbollah, supporters of the group camped out in front of the same US embassy in Baghdad, ready to attack. Days later, a drone strike from the US killed one of the top military commanders in Iran, prompting Iran for yet another attack on the US.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/three-rockets-crash-into-baghdads-us-embassy-compound-wounding-one/2020/01/27/8e371d02-40e4-11ea-abff-5ab1ba98b405_story.html
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ReplyDeleteI think that it is entirely possible Iran is behind the attack. It stems from simple reasoning: governments often try to "terrorize" and instill fear in other governments that they have conflict with, and they will do so in cycles of retaliation because neither can let go of their growing resentment. The United States is guilty of this, as there is evidence that they have planned and conducted assassinations of officials in the Middle East in the past, particularly in Iran. As for why Iran would want to orchestrate these attacks, it would be to express rebellion and hatred toward older, previous U.S. actions and the newer Trump Administration, which has been causing Iran political and economic issues as of late. Iraq aiding the United States will both benefit and detriment their reputation; they will appear more involved and friendly to the international community, but in the Middle East, they will be alienated and associated with being Israeli-supporters, which is still a very unpopular opinion. In addition, Iraq will become more of a target for future Iran aggression.
ReplyDeleteI think it is very possible that Iran is behind this attack because the US and Iran are not on very good terms right now, both politically and economically. This makes a place nearby Iran, like Iraq, an easy place to target the US without it being clearly obvious that it is them. Whether or not Iraq decides to side with the US, there are pros and cons to each side. If they help the US, they are more at-risk for being targeted by other Middle Eastern countries, specifically Iran. However, they will get foreign aid from the US. On the other hand, not helping the US will be safer for them as they will be on good terms with countries like Iran. But, they will have made enemies with a powerful nation.
ReplyDeleteI think it's possible that Iran may be behind this attack because the tensions between Iran and the U.S. recently have been high. This also makes sense because of the recent missile attacks between the U.S. and the middle east. I think that Iraq helping the U.S. would benefit their reputation by the UN and other first world countries but would detriment their reputation for other allies and nations in the Middle East.
ReplyDeleteI think that after everything the Iranian government has done it is doubtful that they didn't have at least some involvement in this attack. It seem as if the Prime Minister is refusing to acknowledge the extent of the government's involvement in these and other terrorist attacks committed against the US recently, and it is clear that should this continue it will lead to conflict.
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