Referring to 29 December U.S. strikes against five Kataeb Hizbollah bases in Iraq and Syria, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo maintained that “this was a defensive action designed to protect American forces and American citizens in Iraq, and it was aimed also at deterring Iran. This was an Iranian-backed rogue militia acting to deny the Iraqi people their basic sovereignty. It’s Qasem Soleimani, it’s the ayatollah working to expand their terror campaign all around the world. They took a strike at an American facility. President Trump’s been pretty darn patient, and he’s made clear at the same time that when Americans’ lives were at risk we would respond”. “Our mission continues to try and get the Islamic Republic of Iran to behave like a normal nation”, Pompeo added. “We just want Iran to stop their terror campaign. We want them to agree that they won’t have nuclear weapons, that they won’t enrich uranium, a set of basic things”.