Iran says attacks on US forces due to 'wrong American policies'

Iran said Monday attacks on US forces in Iraq and elsewhere in the region were a result of "wrong American policies" including support for Israel in its war against Hamas.

US forces have come under repeated attack in Iraq and Syria since war erupted between Hamas and Israel on 7 October, when the Palestinian group carried out its surprise attack on southern Israel.

Israel in response has unleashed a withering and indiscriminate bombing campaign against the Gaza Strip, so far killing 8,306 people, most of them women and children.

"The attack on American bases in the region, especially in Iraq, is the result of wrong American policies in the region, which we hope it will correct," said Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanani.

He said the attacks were carried out by groups against "the US presence in the region and seriously opposed to American support for the crimes of the Zionist regime (Israel)".

"You reap what you sow," he said, urging the United States to "stop" backing Israel.

Iran, which backs Hamas financially and militarily, has hailed the 7 October attacks as a "success" but denied any involvement.

"Over the course of the past 20 days, multiple war crimes have been and continue to be committed in Israel and Palestine"

How does international humanitarian law apply to the Israel-Gaza war?https://t.co/KXGMie5gch

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) October 28, 2023

Iran army's chief of staff Mohammad Bagheri on Monday said Hamas was "ready for an Israeli ground attack".

Earlier on Monday, some 200 protesters including Iranian Jews gathered at a synagogue in Tehran calling for a ceasefire and condemning "the massacre of children, women and defenceless people".

Iran has repeatedly warned of the expansion of the Hamas-Israel war to other parts of the region.

The White House has accused Tehran of "actively facilitating" attacks on US forces in the Middle East.

On Thursday, the US military said it had struck two facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated groups.

President Ebrahim Raisi has said Iran sees it as "its duty to support the resistance groups" but insisted that they "are independent in their opinion, decision and action".

The United States has around 2,500 troops in Iraq and some 900 in Syria which it says are part of efforts to prevent a resurgence of the Islamic State extremist group.