Iran-aligned Iraqi armed group Kataib Hezbollah announced the suspension of all its military operations against US troops in the region, in a decision aimed at preventing “embarrassment” to the Iraqi government, the group said in a statement.

The decision follows the killing of three US troops in a drone attack near the Jordan-Syria border - an attack that the Pentagon said bore the “footprints” of Kataib Hezbollah, though a final assessment had not yet been made.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an Iraqi official said Kataib Hezbollah’s decision came after intensive contacts by the Iraqi government with both US officials and Iraqi armed groups to prevent escalation after the Jordan attack.

“Clearly what happened was a step too far and put everyone at a crossroads,” the official said.

Founded in the aftermath of the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, Kataib Hezbollah is one of the elite Iraqi armed factions closest to Iran.

It is the most powerful armed faction in the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of hardline Shia armed groups that have claimed more than 150 attacks on US forces since the Gaza war began in early October.

Iraq’s government is backed by parties and militias close to Iran, though not directly by the hardline groups that have been firing on US forces, Western and Iraqi officials say.

Baghdad has condemned the attacks while also saying regional escalation would continue as long as the Gaza war went on.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin vowed on Monday the US would take “all necessary actions” to defend its troops after the deadly drone attack, even as President Joe Biden’s administration stressed it was not seeking a war with Iran.

Pentagon declines direct comment

The Pentagon on Tuesday declined direct comment on a statement by Iran-aligned Kataib Hezbollah announcing the suspension of all its military operations against US troops in the region, saying only, “Actions speak louder than words.”

Pressed on the matter, Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said there had already been three attacks against US forces in the region since a Jan. 28 drone attack on a base in Jordan that killed three soldiers and wounded more than 40 troops. He suggested a US response would follow.

“On the statement that’s out there, I don’t think we could be any more clear that we have called on the Iranian proxy groups to stop their attacks. They have not, and so, we will respond in a time and manner of our choosing,” Ryder told a news briefing.

“When I say actions speak louder than words, you know, there (have) been three attacks, to my knowledge, since the 28th of January. And I’ll just leave it there.”