The Pentagon chief Thursday vowed to retaliate with a “multi-tiered” response against Iran-backed militias responsible for killing three US troops and wounding dozens more.

“I will just tell you that we will have a multi-tiered response, and again, we have the ability to respond a number of times, depending on what the situation is,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said during a press briefing with reporters.

Austin warned that “this is a dangerous moment” in the Middle East but said that Washington would continue to work to avoid a wider regional conflict.

Iran is responsible

Despite Iran distancing itself from last weekend’s deadly attacks in Jordan and Iran-backed militias in Iraq claiming to have halted attacks on American forces in Iraq and Syria, Austin brushed off the statements.

“We always listen to what people are saying. But we watch what they do. And again, actions are everything. So we’ll see what happens in the future,” he said.

As for the one-way drone attack on Tower 22 in Jordan, Austin reiterated the US belief that it was done by the “Axis of Resistance.” This was in reference to a group of Iran-backed militias in the Middle East.

“But it really doesn’t matter because Iran sponsors these groups; it funds these groups, and in some cases, it trains these groups on advanced conventional weapons. I think without that facilitation, these kinds of kinds of things don’t happen,” Austin said.