US Senator Graham says Iran missile attack on US bases ‘act of war’
US Senator Lindsey Graham has called Iran's missile strike at US bases in Iraq "an act of war," which Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said was conducted in retaliation of the US assassination of Iranian Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani.
"This was an act of war ... by any reasonable definition," Graham, a well known Iran hawk, said during an interview with Fox News on Tuesday.
"The president has all the authority he needs under Article II to respond," said Graham, a Republican from South Carolina and one of President Donald Trump's top allies in the Senate.
Graham didn't specifically outline what next steps he thinks Trump should take but said the US president should be focused on trying to "restore deterrence."
The IRGC said in a statement that “tens of surface-to-surface missiles” were fired at the US airbase of Ain al-Assad in Anbar province in western Iraq.
The attack was confirmed by US officials.
The IRGC has called for a complete withdrawal of US troops from the Arab country, asserting that it would not differentiate between the US and Israel in retaliating against the assassination of the Iranian national hero.
“We warn US allies providing bases for the [American] terrorist army… that any country serving as the origin of bellicose and aggressive attacks in any form against the Islamic Republic of Iran will be targeted,” read the IRGC statement.
The IRGC added that it would release more details about the strike.
Sirens were reportedly heard and American helicopters flew over the airbase.
The strike comes as no surprise since Iran had vowed to take a “harsh revenge” in the wake of the US terror attack.
The Pentagon claimed that it would take necessary measures to protect US military forces amid heightened tensions in the region.
"We are working on initial battle damage assessments," Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in statement, adding that the bases targeted were at al-Assad air base and another in Erbil, the capital of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region.
The US Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday it was banning US-registered carriers from flying over Iraq, Iran and the Gulf following rocket attacks on US forces in Iraq.
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