The United States has shown it wonât âshy awayâ from responding to attacks against its personnel when necessary, the Pentagon said on Wednesday, after a rocket attack against Iraqâs Ain al-Asad air base, which hosts U.S., coalition and Iraqi forces.
âLetâs do this the right way. Letâs let our Iraqi partners investigate this, see what they learned,â Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told a news briefing, calling the attack a âtroubling development.â
âAnd then, if a response is warranted, I think we have shown clearly that we wonât shy away from that. But weâre just not there yet,â Kirby addded, firmly declining to speculate about whether a response was likely.
There were no reports of injuries among U.S. service personnel but an American civilian contractor died after suffering a âcardiac episodeâ while sheltering from the rockets, the Pentagon said.
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali, Editing by Franklin Paul)
