President Donald Trump ordered, and then aborted at the last minute, military strikes against Iran in retaliation for that country’s downing of a US unmanned spy drone over the Strait of Hormuz.

According to the New York Times, members of the White House, Congress, and the Pentagon who had been briefed on the plans were expecting the pre-dawn strikes on Iranian radar and missile batteries to go forward as late as 7:00pm EDT on Thursday. But then, as the operation reached its early stages and planes were already in the air, the mission was unexpectedly scrubbed.

The US claims that its $130 million surveillance drone was flying in international airspace at the time it was shot down. Iranian officials, who released a video purporting show the launch of an anti-aircraft missile that downed the drone, disputed this account. They claim the aircraft was only nine miles off its coast, putting it well within its sovereign airspace.

Trump’s reaction to the attack was muted. After initially saying Iran “made a very big mistake,” he seemed to be trying to de-escalate the tension, placing the blame on the incident on members of the Iranian military rather than implicate that country’s ruling leaders.

The Times report did not offer any explanation for the last-minute reversal.

It was not clear whether Mr. Trump simply changed his mind on the strikes or whether the administration altered course because of logistics or strategy. It was also not clear whether the attacks might still go forward.

Asked about the plans for a strike and the decision to hold back, the White House declined to comment, as did Pentagon officials. No government officials asked The New York Times to withhold the article.

Trump launched two separate missile strikes against the Syrian government — in 2017 and 2018 — in retaliation for alleged chemical weapons use by that country during its civil war. Both attacks, however, had little lasting effect and Syria possesses nowhere near the strategic military power of Iran.

[Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images]

from Mediaite http://bit.ly/2RtymM1