Media reports citing unnamed officials indicated that Washington had informed Baghdad that “if the U.S. presence continues to be targeted, measures would be taken to close the embassy and a ‘strong and violent’ response would follow against the groups responsible for the attacks”. The State Department indicated that “we have made the point before that the actions of lawless Iran-backed militias remains the single biggest deterrent to stability in Iraq… It is unacceptable for Iran-backed groups to launch rockets at our embassy, attack American and other diplomats and threaten law and order in Iraq”. An Iraqi spokesperson subsequently asserted that “the withdrawal or closure of any diplomatic mission for any country will have disastrous repercussions on the entire region”, while emphasising: “the government has taken numerous measures to secure diplomatic missions”.