Warren accuses Trump of bringing the US closer to war

Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on Tuesday accused President Donald Trump of bringing the US closer to war in the wake of the US air strikes against pro-Iranian militia in Iraq.

“Trump’s reckless decisions to walk away from the Iran Deal and now to launch airstrikes in Iraq without Iraqi government consent have brought us closer to war and endangered U.S. troops and diplomats. We should end the forever wars, not start new ones,” tweeted Warren.

The US military carried out air strikes on Sunday against the Kataib Hezbollah militia in response to the killing of a US civilian contractor in a rocket attack on an Iraqi military base, killing at least 25 militia fighters and wounding 55.

Repeated mortar and rocket attacks have since late October targeted American interests in the country, where the US has 5,200 troops deployed as part of the international coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist group.

On Tuesday, Iraqi militants laid siege to the US Embassy in Baghdad, setting fires and smashing security cameras before forcing their way into the compound.

Trump tweeted that the US held the Islamic Republic “fully responsible” for the siege.

Hours later, he threatened Iran again on Twitter, writing, “Iran will be held fully responsible for lives lost, or damage incurred, at any of our facilities. They will pay a very BIG PRICE! This is not a Warning, it is a Threat.”

This is not the first time that Warren has criticized Trump’s policies. In November, after Iran said it would resume uranium enrichment at the Fordow underground plant, Warren ripped Trump for leaving the Iran nuclear deal.

“Iran’s decision to restart enrichment at Fordow is deeply concerning. Before Donald Trump ripped it up, the Iran Deal was working. We must return to serious diplomacy with allies to constrain Iran’s nuclear program and de-escalate the crisis,” she wrote at the time.