Iranian retaliation has begun!

Yes, I just caught that on the news, also that Royal Navy ships are on alert.

The US allegedly said after the killing of Soliemani, 'the ball is in their court now', and now we witness the Iranian response.

There will be some very anxious families in the US and in the UK tonight.

Terrible, thoughts with all members of the forces and their families. Not much more I can say.

We have been expecting this news and dreading the prospect.

I think that there are many family members of military personnel who will be enjoying their last peaceful night's sleep for some time.

Nobody should be surprised. The President of the USA cannot unilaterally decide – in the middle of a campaign meeting, for heaven's sake – to give the okay to murder a senior officer in another country's army and then expect everything to hunky dory and without any repercussions. Of course, in spite of the "price on his head", neither he nor his family will be ones to suffer.

The dreaded news we were expecting. I am so sad to hear this.

Iranian state media reported the Kiev-bound Ukrainian International Airlines flight PS752 - Boeing 737 -crashed in the early hours of this morning just three minutes after takeoff from Imam Khomeini International Airport, killing all 167 passengers and nine crew on board.

Reports in Ukraine said there were 73 Canadians and 71 Iranians on board as well as 15 Ukrainians, three Britons and several other Europeans.

It has sparked speculation that the jet could have been shot down accidentally by nervous Iranian air defence soldiers, hours after Iran fired 15 ballistic missiles at US bases in Iraq.

Regarding the Iranian air strikes, Trump has tweeted ‘so far, so good’.

The Pentagon says the missiles were 'clearly launched from Iran' to target U.S. military and coalition forces in Iraq. A U.S. official said there were no immediate reports of American casualties, though buildings were still being searched. Iraqi officials say there were no casualties among their forces either.

We are personally very worried. I will say no more.

I think the thread title would have been better without the exclamation mark. It almost shouts ‘bring it on/here it comes’.

Rough timeline of hostilities between Iran - USA

05/19 Iran attacks oil tankers in the gulf

06/19 Iran shoots down US drone

07/19 Iran seizes British Oil Tanker

09/19 Iran attacks Saudi state run oil
Co.

12/19 Iran attacks US Embassy

12/19 USA assassinate Iranian head of special forces

01/20 Iran fires multiple missiles on two bases in Iraq housing Iraq/USA troops.

Iran started this not Trump, if you pull the USAs tail it will bite.

(I am not a Trump fan)

Ug, I promise you that nothing could be further from the truth. Far from wanting to 'bring it on', the exclamation mark was used to denote my state of shock and fear and yes, dread. I was actually feeling very tearful and conscious of the effect the news would have on my daughter when she woke this morning.

For some of us on here this touches us very personally indeed.

Just watched Frank Gardner on BBC News channel, who has rubbished the hysterical scaremongers who are wringing their hands fearing that WW3 is about to start. He seems to think it is just posturing, and the Iranian response was minimal and proportionate, and the situation is very unlikely to escalate. So I really hope the usual hysterical culprits on Gransnet will take note and keep calm!

I am vastly relieved that there have been no reported casualties. I've never in my life been described as hysterical, but I admit that it's hard to feel calm when one son-in-law has already been killed in a senseless war and another son-in-law may possibly to be endangered by the current situation.

Hand-wringing is optional, grannygravy but genuine concerns over the continuing escalation of relationships between the US and Iran are perfectly justified. If you can't understand that, your head must be very deep in the sand.

The reply to your list is as I would say to boys hitting each other with sticks, "I don't care who started it! It is time to stop before someone gets really hurt!" but with these adult children, many other people get hurt.

Elegran we are a military family I can assure you my head is nowhere near any sand (not until my next fly and flop
holiday that is)

Opal Frank Gardner also said that this was unlikely to be the final act but that other actions would be much more carefully planned and targeted using covert activities. The ultimate aim of Iran being the removal of US influence from the area. WW3 may not be an issue but continued conflict in the area is.

GG13 thank you for that timeline of Iranian hostilities towards the USA. And all of the attacks you have mentioned took place over the last nine months. It’s very illuminating and so easy for us to forget when an attack is reported in the news until something as big as the killing of Soleimani is reported. It puts events into perspective.
Thankfully no one was killed in the attack on US bases last night. Let’s hope this will put an end to it. There will be many anxious families in the USA and Britain today. My thoughts are with these people.

grannyactivist

trisher there may well be "continued conflict" in the area - in view of the Middle Eastern mentality, I think there always will be - but we all know who the hysterical posters are, claiming WW3 is about to start, and it is they to whom my earlier post was directed.

The Iranian Foreign Minister has tweeted they will defend themselves but they don't want an escalation or war.

I don't think WWIII is about to commence

But many people seem to enjoy getting hysterical these days about anything and everything

grannyactivist ?

GranyGravy13 As you are so interested in the events leading up to this would you like to list the sanctions which the US has inflicted on Iran during the Trump administration and perhaps comment on how this has influence Iranian attitudes to the US?
This is by no means as one sided a conflict as you are trying to present.
Incidently the US and Iran posted conflicting GPS information about the drone. Iran claiming it illegally breached their air space. Given the difficulties drones can cause for air traffic perhaps it was therefore an advisable action.

Iran has blamed technical failure and an engine fire for a plane crash which killed 177 people near Tehran today, but is refusing to hand over the recovered black boxes to Boeing or the US.

Another psychopathic megalomaniac like Blair with his paranoia at capturing/killing Saddam Hussein. A wrong move.

The resultant war which followed in 2003 changed this country forever with our constant fear of reprisals whichever form they took, terrorism being our biggest fear since.