HOW SHOULD THE UNITED STATES RESPOND TO IRAN AFTER THE TOWER 22 ATTACK? LESSONS FROM OPERATION PRAYING MANTIS
Frank Sobchak | 02.01.24
On January 28, three American soldiers were killed and dozens injured by a one-way suicide drone at a remote outpost in Jordan, marking the first time that US servicemembers were killed in action since the start of the war in Gaza. Although the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an alliance of several Shi’a militias claimed responsibility, there was little question who was actually behind the attack. As part of the “Axis of Resistance,” the group serves as an Iranian proxy with many of its affiliates benefiting from the Islamic Republic’s financing, training, and planning. Some of the group’s members, such as Kataib Hizballah and Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq, were active combatants against the United States during the 2003–2011 war in Iraq.
Crossing the red line of killing Americans immediately spurred a debate of how best to respond. Many, including some officials within the Biden administration, are concerned that escalating could widen the conflict and that a response should be proportional. While such a stance has generally been US policy during the post-9/11 wars, some have argued that there is a longer historical precedent that “getting embroiled in a major conflict with Iran is in no one’s interests.” Such a claim, however, is not historically accurate—during the 1980s “tanker war,” the United States became embroiled in a major conflict with Iran that included Operation Praying Mantis, the US Navy’s largest surface action since World War II. That operation still offers lessons for us today on how to best respond to aggression and manage the dangers of escalation.
Operation Praying Mantis was part of a larger operation, Earnest Will, which began in 1987 when Iraqi and Iranian forces increased attacks on merchant ships in the Persian Gulf during the Iran-Iraq War. Earnest Will reflagged Kuwaiti tankers under the Stars and Stripes, which enabled them to be escorted by US Navy Warships. In July 1987, after one of the tankers in the very first escorted convoy struck a mine, elements of the newly formed US Special Operations Command were called forward to assist the mission. Two months later, helicopters from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment caught an Iranian ship laying mines and disabled it. Navy SEALs then boarded the vessel, gathered intelligence and evidence, and scuttled the ship. In other skirmishes days after that incident, US helicopters sank three other Iranian boats. After two tankers were hit by missiles the next month, Navy warships shelled IRGC bases on Iranian oil platforms. Navy SEALs followed the attacks, planting demolitions charges that destroyed one platform before they boarded and searched another.
https://mwi.westpoint.edu/how-should-the-united-states-respond-to-iran-after-the-tower-22-attack-lessons-from-operation-praying-mantis/
