Washington—Representative Eliot L. Engel, Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, today made the following statement:

“I am closely monitoring the airstrikes by American forces in Iraq. Anyone who harms or kills an American is going to face consequences, and American forces always have a right to defend themselves.

“But looking at the whole picture, air strikes clearly don’t advance our broader interest of deterring Iran and don’t constitute a strategy. This administration lurches from crisis to crisis with no plan. The result is that we’re now closer to war with a country that’s closer to possessing a nuclear weapon. It’s dangerous and irresponsible.

“To make matters worse, the administration hasn’t been straight with the American people about its Iran policy. Given the lack of transparency and prior consultation with Congress, the House and Senate passed bipartisan legislation to restrict the President from starting a war with Iran. The American people don’t want war with Iran and Congress hasn’t authorized it. The administration needs to provide truthful, transparent answers about how it intends to deal with Iran, and I am determined to get those answers.”

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