Russia providing Iran intelligence to target US forces
PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — Illustrative WANA/Reuters photo via Al Jazeera
Russia is providing Iran with targeting information that includes locations of U.S. warships and aircraft in the Middle East, the Washington Post reported on Friday, citing three officials familiar with the intelligence.
The extent of Russia's support to Iran was not entirely clear but the Iranian military's own ability to locate U.S. forces has been degraded since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Tehran last week, the Post reported.
The war has since escalated, triggering retaliatory strikes by Iran, and ensnared its neighbors as it seeks to impose a high cost on the U.S., Israel and their allies.
The U.S. military has identified six reserve soldiers killed in Kuwait when a drone slammed into a U.S. military facility in Port Shuaiba. Trump and other senior officials have warned the conflict will likely result in more U.S. military deaths.
A White House spokeswoman did not directly comment on the alleged Russian support to Iran.
"The Iranian regime is being absolutely crushed. Their ballistic missile retaliation is decreasing every day, their navy is being wiped out, their production capacity is being demolished, and proxies are hardly putting up a fight," White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement, responding to questions from Reuters.
Russia was in dialogue with representatives of Iran's leadership, the Kremlin said on Friday. It declined to provide details when asked by reporters whether Moscow was helping Tehran.
The conflict has been an unexpected shot in the arm for Russia, with a significant bump in demand for its oil and gas, boosting exports battered in recent years by sanctions linked to its war in Ukraine. The United States has given Ukraine intelligence information during its war with Russia.
The Russian Embassy in Washington and Russia's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya in Toronto; Editing by Scott Malone and Alistair Bell // REUTERS)
