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Iran's missile attack and its repercussions: What we know

The world has anxiously awaited how Iran would retaliate after the U.S. killed its top general in a drone strike last week, and Iran appeared to deliver its answer this week by launching more than a dozen missiles at two Iraqi bases housing U.S. and coalition troops. 

In a televised address from the White House on Wednesday, President Donald Trump said no U.S. or coalition troops were killed in the attack and that damage to the base was minimal. 

It is unknown whether Iran plans to take further action in response to the killing of Gen. Qasem Soleimani but Trump said it appeared the regime was "standing down." The president did not indicate that the U.S. would retaliate militarily for the missile attack, indicating the escalating conflict between the two nations that experts feared could lead to war may be ratcheting down. 

Here is what we know: 

The Iranian attack 

Iran fired the ballistic missiles at about 5:30 p.m. EST Tuesday, which was early Wednesday in Iraq, Department of Defense spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement. 

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The barrage targeted the al-Asad air base in western Iraq and the Erbil base, which is in Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region. The Ain al-Assad base was used by U.S. forces after the 2003 invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein and currently houses about 1,500 U.S. and coalition forces.

“It was a massive attack with ballistic missiles,” a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly told USA TODAY. The official said a hangar was damaged in the attack, but that fortunately troops had advance warning of the attack and were able to take cover. 

Trump made a surprise visit to the base just after Christmas 2018, when he celebrated successes against the Islamic State. Vice President Mike Pence visited the base in 2019, serving Thanksgiving dinner to service members and addressing troops at the Erbil base.

More:Trump once visited Iraq base attacked by Iran missiles

Why did Iran attack? 

The Pentagon said it was "clear that these missiles were launched from Iran" and that  Iranian officials had acknowledged that they were behind the attack, which the Iranians called an act of defense in response to the death of Soleimani. 

Soleimani was the head of Iran's Quds Force, an elite unit within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has been designated a terrorist organization by the Trump administration. The U.S. said Soleimani was killed because he posed an imminent threat and was plotting an attack on Americans, though officials have yet to present evidence about the plot. 

The U.S. says Soleimani was behind the training of Iraqi militants after the 2003 invasion and that he was responsible for the deaths of more than 600 U.S. service members in Iraq. 

Soleimani was killed early Friday outside the Baghdad airport, days after demonstrators who belonged to Iran-backed militias stormed the U.S. Embassy in the Iraqi capital. U.S. airstrikes had killed at least two dozen fighters from one of those militias, which the U.S. said was behind a rocket attack that killed an American contractor. 

'This was an act of war':Lawmakers react to Iran's missile strike on US military bases

Trump addresses nation 

Trump said Americans should be grateful that no U.S. service members were hurt in the missile attack and that Iran appeared to be "standing down, which is a very good thing for all parties concerned and very good thing for the world." 

He did not indicate that the U.S. would take any military action in response to the attack but he opened his address by declaring Iran would never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons during his administration. He said he would push for "powerful" new sanctions on Iran.

He also called on NATO to take a larger role in the Middle East to check Iran, which he called the "leading sponsor of terrorism." 

The president had previously warned Iran that any attack on "Americans, or American assets" would lead to a counterattack on 52 Iranian sites.  

Did Iran intentionally avoid US casualties? 

Iran may have intentionally missed targets on bases in Iraq to avoid significant U.S. casualties and damage to infrastructure, according to U.S. government sources.

The Iranians know how to hit a target and inflict "grave damage" when they want to destroy it, said a U.S. official with knowledge of Iranian capabilities who was not authorized to speak publicly. It is possible that more moderate elements in the Iranian government are pushing for restraint, the official said.

Another senior staff member on Capitol Hill said the Iranians deliberately chose their targets as a warning, not to inflict major damage

Will Iran continue to attack? 

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called the attack a "slap" that was "not sufficient" to avenge Soleimani, according to the Associated Press. 

But Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif said in a tweet that Iran had "concluded proportionate measures in self-defense" with the missile strike. 

"We do not seek escalation or war, but will defend ourselves against any aggression," Zarif said. 

The missile strike could be the end of Iran's retaliation barring a retaliatory attack from the U.S. It is possible that Iran could take further direct military action, attack Americans with its proxy forces in the region or turn to unconventional attacks such as cyberwarfare

Ukrainian airliner goes down in Tehran 

Hours after Iran launched its missiles, a Ukrainian passenger plane crashed after takeoff from Tehran's airport, killing all 176 people on board. 

A spokesman for Iran’s Road and Transportation Ministry said the pilot lost control after a fire broke out in one of the plane's engines. 

There does not appear to be any connection between the crash and the tensions between the U.S. and Iran, though the investigation is ongoing. 

Contributing: Tom Vanden Brook, John Fritze and Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY; the Associated Press

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