US State Department issues condemnation of Iran’s attacks in Erbil

Following Iran's announcement late Monday that it had launched strikes against a "spy headquarters and the gathering of anti-Iranian terrorist groups," the US State Department released a statement condemning Iran's attacks. 

"The United States strongly condemns Iran’s attacks in Erbil today and offers condolences to the families of those who were killed. We oppose Iran’s reckless missile strikes, which undermine Iraq’s stability," Matthew Miller, the State Department spokesperson said in a statement. 

Miller added that the U.S. supports the Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government’s efforts to meet the aspirations of the Iraqi people.

This all comes just days after the State Department claimed the Biden administration 'will ensure one way or another that Iran will never obtain a nuclear weapon.'

IRAN ANNOUNCES STRIKES IN NORTHERN IRAQ, SYRIA

Recent reports claim the US is close to a deal with Iran that would free US citizens held in Iran and also delay Iran's nuclear program. (Probst/ullstein bild via Getty Images,Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images)

"It was only a matter of when, not if, Iran would act on it's stated intent to deliver a "hard response" to the terror attack it suffered earlier this year," Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) told Fox News Digital. "Iran's improving ballistic missile capabilities means that these weapons of war will be used more often, and for purposes of conflict adjudication. This raises the risk of escalation mismanagement with any actor involving Iran."

At least five ballistic missiles struck Erbil in the late hours of Monday. The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the strikes, claiming to have hit "spy headquarters" of anti-Iran groups in the Kurdistan Region. 

The strikes killed at least four civilians and injured 17 others. 

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Taleblu added that Iran is just adding more fuel to the regional fire by launching missiles at Iraq and Syria at a time when its proxies are firing at Israel, U.S. forces and international shipping.

"Iran's ballistic missile program is the largest in the Middle East, with Tehran making improvements to precision, range, survivability, and maneuverability for this force. This strike raises more questions than answers, particularly, why Syria and Iraq, both to Iran's west, were targeted when the culprit behind the terror attack was ISIS-K, which operates from Iran’s east," Taleblu continued.

Taleblu said while Iran has not reported exactly which missile it has launched, solid-propellant short-range or close-range ballistic missiles with precision strike capabilities have been used in every single missile operation since 2017.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei meets Chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau, Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, Iran on November 5, 2023.  (Iranian Leader Press Office / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

"Iran has engaged in eight ballistic missile operations from its own territory since 2017, with five of them occurring under the Biden administration’s watch," Tabeblu said.

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In total, Iran has launched at least 14 ballistic missile operations since the end of the Iran-Iraq War in 1988 and all have been launched at targets in Iraq or Syria, according to Tabeblu.