Biden: If ‘Necessary,’ I Will ‘Direct Additional Measures’ Against IRGC Personnel

 President Joe Biden said in a letter to Congress on Sunday that he was prepared to take additional action in the Middle East against members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) after the U.S. launched retaliatory strikes against Iranian-backed terrorist groups in Iraq and Syria late last week.

The strikes were conducted after an Iranian-backed terrorist group killed three U.S. soldiers and wounded dozens more in a suicide drone attack on a U.S. base in Jordan.

“U.S. military forces struck more than 85 targets, with numerous aircraft to include long-range bombers flown from United States,” U.S. Central Command said in a statement. “The airstrikes employed more than 125 precision munitions. The facilities that were struck included command and control operations, centers, intelligence centers, rockets, and missiles, and unmanned aerial vehicle storages, and logistics and munition supply chain facilities of militia groups and their IRGC sponsors who facilitated attacks against U.S. and Coalition forces.”

In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Biden said that he was legally allowed to conduct the strikes without congressional approval “pursuant to the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40).”

 

Toward the end of the letter, Biden said that he would authorize, if necessary, action against the IRGC, which is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization.

“If necessary, I will direct additional measures, including against the IRGC and IRGC-affiliated personnel and facilities, as appropriate, to address the series of attacks against United States forces and facilities,” he said.

The letter did not give any details about what additional measures the administration was prepared to take.